Everything to me
by lord of the land of fire
Summary: Shinji is brought along by his father and meets Rei, forming a special bond.
1. You are everything to me

**Author's Notes: **I only recently discovered Neon Genesis Evangelion and have seen the entire original anime as well as the first two movies; Rebuild and You can (not) advance. I may come back to continue this. Then again I may not, that's the wonderful thing about this site; you can write whatever you want. For now I shall leave this as a one shot.

XXXXXXXXXX

"Shinji, it's time to wake up."

Slowly opening his eyes he saw Rei sitting on the edge of the bed looking at him with that gentle smile that was only for him. "Five more minutes," he mumbled.

Leaning down she placed a feather soft kiss on his lips. "Please get up now or we will be late Shinji."

XXXXXXXXXX

As they had since grade school they entered the class together. Their fellow students spared them a casual glance before returning to their conversations.

"How is the happy couple today?" Kensuke asked with a big grin on his face. "Getting to live all alone with a girl, I'm so jealous!"

Sitting next to his best friend Tonji let out a big laugh. "Seriously, you're so lucky! You've got a girl to make a tasty bento for you every day. I wish I did." Though he did not notice the class rep sent a shy look his way when she heard that.

Rei calmly turned to look at the two boys. "I have told you before Shinji is the one who does all the cooking."

"And what do you do for him? Hmmm?" Kensuke asked with an over eager leer.

"Knock it off," Shinji told them. They might be his two best friends but he didn't appreciate the way they hinted at things.

Since he and Rei had been given their own apartment there had been all sorts of rumors of exactly what sort of, 'relationship' the two of them had. No one could miss the fact that the only person Rei was ever friendly with was him. People also noted that no matter what he did she was always close by. They even assumed the whole reason Rei had learned to play the violin was just so she could perform in the same club with him when he played the cello. They were in every class together and except during PE it was very rare to see the two of them apart.

When the teacher entered class rep Hikari jumped to her feet. "Stand," she called out. "Bow. Sit." The morning ritual complete they all settled down to another day of class.

XXXXXXXXXX

"Do their jokes ever bother you?" Shinji asked her quietly as they ate the bentos he'd made last night.

"No," she replied calmly like always.

They were sitting on a bench out in the school courtyard. He saw a group of girls look in their direction and begin to laugh quietly as they put their heads together. She noticed the unhappy look on his face.

"Do they bother you Shinji?"

"Sometimes," he admitted. "I wish people would just leave us alone and mind their own business."

"Our relationship is unusual," she stated. "It is human nature to comment on things that are perceived to be unusual."

His face turned red when she said that. Once she would have failed to even notice it, even now understanding everything about human emotions was still hard sometimes.

"Does my saying that embarrass you?"

"No," he said quickly and shoveled some food into his mouth. "It's just some things are private and should be left alone." He gave her a sideways glance. "Does it _really _not bother you? Not even a little?"

"I don't care what other people think or say." She said and took a small bite of food. "The only ones who matter to me are you and Commander Ikari."

Shinji made a sour face.

"You don't like it when I mention him do you?"

"It's fine," he said. "Come on lunch is almost over."

XXXXXXXXXX

After their last class they went to the music room to practice with the other members of the music club.

Once that was done they left the school grounds and headed off to 'work.'

XXXXXXXXXX

Ritsuko was nodding as she looked over the readouts. "Rei's synch rate is 68.2, while Shinji's is 72.6, we should do some field testing with Units 00 and 01."

"That would be fun," Misato said. "It's too bad we can't have them do it right here in Tokyo 3 though."

"Too hard to maintain secrecy with more than a million witnesses nearby. It would also be dangerous if anything were to go wrong," Ritsuko said without ever taking her eyes off the data.

"I suppose," Misato said with a heavy sigh.

Now Ritsuko turned away to look at her old friend. "Something wrong? I'd expect you to be a bit more excited at the prospect of taking the EVAs out for field tests."

"Do you ever wonder if all this is for nothing?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean all of this," she waved about at all the personnel and equipment of NERV headquarters. "All the billions we've spent developing the EVAs and building the geofront and Tokyo 3. What if _they _never come back again? What if the second impact was nothing but a unique one time disaster?"

_You wouldn't need to ask that if you knew what was hidden beneath us. _"In that case we've wasted billions and billions of dollars that could have been better spent aiding people still suffering from the results of the Second Impact." She said without hesitation. "**But **think of this as the ultimate insurance policy. If the angels ever do return NERV and the EVAs will be the only thing standing between us and Third Impact. Even if the chances are one in a thousand isn't it worth it?"

"Well, when you put it like that, I suppose so. I'd just hate to never actually put the EVAs to use."

Ritsuko raised a dark eyebrow. "Wouldn't that be a good thing?" _Not that there's any real hope of that._

Misato shrugged. "I'd rather deal with a problem than just leave it there."

"You needn't concern yourself about that officer Katsuragi," Gendo's voice told her. "I have no doubt that none of this will be wasted. The units and their pilots will fulfill their destinies."

Misato gave the commander a considering look. She didn't really like him, so far as she knew no one did. But she and everyone here _did _respect his intelligence and his driving will. He had almost single handedly convinced the UN of the need to create and fund NERV. If the angels did come back it would be due to him that humanity would at least have a fighting chance. Yes, she respected his intelligence and his commitment; his sense of morality was another matter.

"What sort of destinies do those two have?" She asked.

He crossed his hands in front of his face. "They will lead humanity to its ultimate fate."

_What the hell does that mean? _Misato wondered. "Commander may I ask you a question concerning the EVA pilots?"

"Go ahead," he told her in his bored, lifeless tone.

"Don't you think it would be better if the two of them lived with a guardian? Aren't they a little young to be on their own?" She asked him. "If necessary I would even be willing to volunteer to look out for them."

"That is not necessary officer Katsuragi. Rei asked that they be allowed to live alone together."

Misato frowned when she realized that was the entire explanation. "You mean you agreed to it simply because Rei asked?"

"That's right," he said and refused to expand on his answer.

Realizing as much she let the matter drop.

Staring at the view screen Commander Ikari looked exclusively at Rei's image, completely ignoring his son's.

When he had brought Shinji with him it had been almost as an afterthought. He'd hired a caregiver to look after him and rarely saw the boy. His work was everything, and truthfully he didn't know how to deal with him given the responsibility he felt for what happened to Yui. He tried to think about Shinji as little as possible.

So he'd been quite shocked when he learned Rei had developed a fondness for him. He'd been eager to draw out human emotions from her in order to make her easier to manage. Shinji, for some reason, had made a strong connection with her.

So he used his son to tie a leash to her.

He made sure they were in every class together in every grade. He had them spend time together at the facility. He eventually had her live in the same apartment with Shinji and his caregiver. (By that time Gendo had more or less moved into his office, returning to the apartment only to sleep.) About a year ago Rei had come to him and asked to live alone with Shinji. It was the first time she had ever asked him for anything. He had agreed and arranged a new apartment for the two of them. Though still rather withdrawn her time with Shinji had made her at least a little more social and brought some emotion to the surface. He was happy to see that as it made her easier to manipulate and control.

XXXXXXXXXX

Though their apartment was on the sixth floor of a high rise building they always kept the blinds closed. They treasured their privacy.

Shinji had made dinner and prepared their bentos for tomorrow. As she always did she had cleaned up after their meal. That was their rule, Shinji cooked and she cleaned. After eating they did their homework together and then sat on the couch and watched a little TV.

And then they made love.

Lying naked together on their bed they fell into a slow, unhurried rhythm. He kissed her and squeezed her small breasts as he thrust in and out of her.

"Shinji," she panted happily. "I love you."

"I love you too Rei."

She closed her eyes and enjoyed the feeling of his body pressing down on hers. She treasured the pulsing that was building in her towards a climax. _This is what love feels like, _she thought. This was their way of sharing the love they felt for each other.

She had felt alone and cut off from everyone for a long time. She knew what she was and knew how different she was from everyone else. She never felt any connection to anyone. Not even to Commander Ikari, she knew he was only using her. She existed only to be used, that was what she'd believed. She was nothing but a tool that would one day free all human souls from the bonds of the flesh. She had no meaning or importance in and of herself.

Then she'd met a young boy who had told her that he liked her.

The first time she'd heard those words something had stirred inside her heart. It was the first time she had _felt_. And as she spent more and more time with him she slowly realized that those feelings mattered to her.

She could feel him nearing his limit and groaning. She opened her eyes to look into his sweaty eager face.

"I love you!" He cried as he pulled out and let go.

"I love you," she said more quietly but just as sincerely. _I love you Shinji, and when the time comes I will save you. For you alone are everything to me._

XXXXXXXXXX

Out past the moon human satellites spotted an object as it began its approach towards the earth. It was soon designated the third Angel Sachiel.

The time had at last come for humanity's final trial to begin.


	2. For all mankind

In the command station of NERV headquarters, known as Central Dogma, the massive view screen displayed the image of a monster.

Because the monster was mostly black it was a bit hard to see. The background behind it was empty space and stars, so naturally most of its body just seemed to disappear. Parts of it were clear though. It had what looked like bits and pieces of an exoskeleton. A birdlike skull, bony shoulder blades, some ribs and other protrusions about its thighs gleamed like bleached bone and were clear to see. Also clear to see was the giant red sphere that was the monster's, 'core' located right in the middle of its chest. This would be the creature's one weak point.

Staring up at the screen it didn't seem to be doing much. To the naked eye there were no visible signs of motion, no engines, no thrust, it just hung there in space with its arms loosely at its sides. Yet somehow or other it was traveling towards the Earth at a speed of over 1,000 miles per hour.

Most of the technicians and officers on duty in central Dogma had a hard time looking away from the image that hung there oppressively over them. Even the soldiers who were on guard had to fight to keep their eyes from drifting back up to the overhead image. Everyone who worked in NERV had, from necessity, been told the truth about Second Impact and the reason for what they were doing. Sworn to secrecy and facing execution if they revealed anything they all worked knowing that mankind was under threat.

Second Impact had obliterated Antarctica, poisoned the world's oceans, killed off all marine life, and caused the deaths (either directly or by famine, disease, or war) of nearly three **billion **people (half the human population). A Third Impact would certainly result in human extinction. That was what they were now facing and what the monster on the screen represented. Despite being aware of the possibility for years having the reality suddenly appear was difficult for most of them to take.

For the four key figures though there was no sense of panic or inevitable doom. NERV Commander Ikari Gendo was as calm and dispassionate as always. Looking at him one would never guess humanity was facing its possible end, his expression was exactly the same as it had been the day, week, or month before.

Standing at his side as usual was Fuyutsuki Kozo, NERV Deputy Commander and Gendo's right hand. The old man looked worried; he could not pretend to be unconcerned about what they were up against. But there was no hint of panic in him, only the sense that he would do his duty come what may.

Head Researcher and scientist Akagi Ritsuko had a cigarette in her mouth and was busy going over the latest readouts from the satellites concerning the angel. She was also working on last minute maintenance on Units 00 and 01 trying to get them as battle ready as possible. Alone among them she had real work to do and went at it with her usual determination and perfectionism. She liked to solve problems whatever they were and would deal with balancing her checkbook or preparing for an apocalypse in exactly the same manner.

Alone among them Chief Operations Officer Katsuragi Misato wore an eager smile. Along with everyone else she understood the sort of awesome power the Angels represented and the danger they were all in. She smiled because as she had told Ritsuko only hours ago she truly wanted to put the EVAs to work. For her the Angels had to be destroyed, and that could only be done by fighting them.

A phone rang on the Commander's desk. He picked it up and spoke with his usual disinterest. "This is Commander Ikari." He listened in silence for a moment. "Yes, I see." The short conversation over he put the receiver back down.

"I assume that was the JSSDF," Fuyutsuki said.

"Yes," Gendo answered calmly. "They were informing me that the UN and the Japanese government have declared a state of emergency and granted them control of all JSSDF and UN military forces in the area. They will be in charge of dealing with the enemy… for now."

"What the hell can conventional forces do against an angel?" Misato demanded. "Nothing they have will work against an AT field."

"That's very true," Ritsuko said while keeping her eyes on a computer screen's data. "All they're going to do is throw away a lot of lives and equipment."

"They don't really understand what we're up against yet," Fuyutsuki said regretfully. He hated useless sacrifices, pointless deaths.

"It's just as well," Gendo said. "Let them throw everything they can at it. Once they see how useless it is they'll give me the authority to handle things without any interference." The thought of those brave young men dying interested him only so far as it would help him reach his ultimate goal. "Has there been any chance in course or speed?"

"None," Ritsuko answered immediately. "Its trajectory will take it to a point in the ocean about thirty miles east of Tokyo 3. Impact should take place in roughly 16 hours."

It was now almost midnight.

"Should we begin a general evacuation?" Misato asked.

"No Officer Katsuragi," Gendo replied. "We'll wait until 0800 to announce that, in the meantime we will allow all local officials to withdraw while military units take up their positions."

"What about the pilots Rei and Shinji?"

"There's nothing to be gained from bringing them in now. Let them get a good night's sleep and have them report in first thing in the morning."

XXXXXXXXXX

"Shinji, it's time to wake up."

He opened his eyes to see Rei sitting on the edge of their bed. She had already showered and was dressed in her school uniform. Just like every morning she was ready to go before he was even out of bed.

"How do you wake up every day at the same time without an alarm clock?" He asked in a bleary voice.

"I don't know," she said. "I just do. Now you need to wake up or we're going to be late." She leaned down and gave him a light kiss on his lips.

Mumbling to himself Shinji dragged his body out of bed and towards the bathroom. As he took a quick shower he heard the telephone ring. When he came out of the shower drying his hair Rei was waiting patiently.

"School has been cancelled Shinji, we're to report directly to headquarters. There's already a car downstairs waiting for us."

"Huh? Why would they cancel school? And why do we need a ride all of a sudden?" He frowned unhappily. "What do you thinks going on?"

"They didn't say, I'm sure we'll be told once we report in." That was true, but Rei suspected she knew the reason behind it. _It's finally beginning, _she thought. _These carefree days are ending. _She was surprised by the sudden empty feeling inside her chest and the sense of sorrow. Except for her feelings of love she wasn't used to strong emotions. She'd known this day would come, she hadn't expected its arrival would affect her so.

"Well it's not so bad I guess, it's more fun working with the EVAs then going to school anyway." Shinji started getting dressed without any sense of foreboding. To his mind this was going to be an unusual day, but there was no reason to think it would be a bad one.

"Shinji?"

"Yes?"

"This Saturday, can we go to the lake and have a picnic?"

He looked at her in surprise. "We haven't done that in awhile. Why do you want to go now all of a sudden?"

"I always liked going there with you, I would just like to go again. Can we?"

"Sure," he answered with a grin. "I'll make some sandwiches and miso soup and we can spend the afternoon by the lake."

"Good," she said.

XXXXXXXXXX

A couple unsmiling men in black business suits were waiting for them right outside their building. A pair of police cars escorted them even though there was little traffic on the streets. It was about then that Shinji began wondering what was going on.

Once safely within NERV's geofront they were brought to a training room where his father and Misato were waiting for them. As soon as he saw his father there Shinji got a _really _bad feeling in the pit of his stomach.

"Good morning Commander Ikari, good morning Officer Katsuragi." Rei greeted them.

"Good morning Rei," Gendo said with a touch of warmth in his voice. It faded to nothing when he greeted his son. "Good morning Shinji."

"Good morning father," he said coolly. "Hi Misato, what's going on?" He deliberately turned his focus to her. It was a whole lot easier for him to deal with her rather than his father.

Misato tapped a few keys on a computer and an image appeared on a large screen on the far wall.

As soon as he saw it Shinji gasped and even took a couple steps back. Rei simply looked at it with no visible reaction. Misato noted that, no matter how withdrawn and stoic she might normally be Misato had expected _something _out of her.

"Wha… what is that?" Shinji asked, his voice shaky.

"That is an angel Shinji," Misato told him. "It's currently in space and heading towards us. We expect it to crash into the sea near here in about 8 hours. It has been officially designated the third angel and given the codename Sachiel."

Shinji swallowed and stared at the horrible monster.

"Right now JSSDF and UN forces are being assembled to try and stop it once it arrives." Misato informed them. "Ritsuko estimates the probability of their success at less than .0001%."

"Which means you and Rei will have to fight it," Gendo told him in his disinterested tone.

"Understood," Rei said automatically.

"What?!" Shinji cried. "You want us to fight _that_?"

"Why are you acting so surprised?" Gendo asked him. "Why do you think you and Rei have been working with the EVAs for all this time if not for this?"

"I… I wanted to try and make you proud of me," he admitted. "I thought I was helping you with your work and helping Rei too. It was really fun working with my EVA, and it was cool being a real live test pilot for something like that. But… but I never thought I'd actually have to go and fight."

"You thought you were here just to help us run tests and act as a pilot?" Gendo said coldly. "Were you really so stupid Shinji? You know what happened at the Second Impact and the reason NERV exists. You were made Unit 01's pilot because you are the only person who can do it. Just as Rei is the only one who can pilot Unit 00. You were always meant to go into battle."

Shinji stared at his father with an open mouth. _How can he talk about this like it's nothing?!_

"There's really nothing to be worried about Shinji-kun," Misato told him. She smiled confidently and tried to make up for the Commander's callousness. "The EVAs were specifically designed to fight the Angels; they are the only human made weapons that can. Even though we never got around to field tests you've both used your EVAs plenty of times under controlled conditions. I'm sure you'll be fine."

There had actually been problems with Rei using her EVA. It had frozen and proven unresponsive at times. Once during a test it had seemed to be about to go completely out of control. Shinji had been in the observation room that day and had gotten on the radio to call to her. As soon as she'd heard his voice Rei had regained control of Unit 00. The test had been a failure but it had at least not been a disaster.

By comparison Shinji had always had excellent control over Unit 01. The machine responded to his will easily and had never once frozen. His sync rates with his EVA were consistently 5 to 10 points higher than Rei's. Shinji just seemed to have a natural talent as an EVA pilot.

_If it comes to it Shinji will have to do most of the fighting, _Misato thought.

He kept staring at the image on the screen. "I… I don't think I can do it," he said sheepishly.

"No one else can pilot Unit 01 Shinji," Gendo told him. "It has to be you."

"But I don't think I can!" Shinji shouted at him. "This isn't the same as running in place or shooting a gun at a target! You want me to actually fight a monster and maybe get killed!"

"Fighting and placing your life in danger for the sake of others is something expected of every soldier," his father told him remorselessly.

"I'm not a soldier father! I'm a fourteen year old High School student!"

"You are an EVA pilot," he said.

"But I don't think I can do it! Don't you understand? This is too much to suddenly ask!"

"I see," Gendo said coldly. "So while everyone else here fights for the sake of all mankind you prefer to run and hide. Is that it?"

Shinji flinched and looked away from his father's accusing stare.

"Very well, there's no way for me to compel you to fight. Rei," he turned to her. "You will have to fight all alone it seems."

"Yes," she answered. She turned to Shinji and offered him a soft smile. "It's all right Shinji; I will take care of it. You don't have to fight if you don't want to."

"What? Rei you can't fight that thing all alone!"

"I have to," she said. "The angel has to be defeated."

"Are you really going to let Rei face this danger all by herself while you cower here where it's safe?" Gendo asked. "Is that the kind of man you are Shinji?"

He glared hatefully at his father. He knew what he was doing. _Just like always he just ends up using me. _"I'll fight," he said at last. "If Rei's going out there then of course I'll go too."

"You don't have to Shinji," Rei told him. "If you're scared then I can go alone."

He shook his head. "I'm scared Rei, I'm really, really scared." He again looked at the image on the screen. "But there's no way I could stand by and let you go alone. I couldn't live with myself if I did that."

"How romantic," Misato cooed. "Rei you better hold on to him or when he gets a little older I may have to steal him from you."

"No," she said sounding completely serious. She took a hold of one of his arms. "No one is allowed to take Shinji from me."

"Heh, just kidding, he's too short for me anyway."

"Hey!" Shinji complained. "I'm not done growing you know!"

"Since you have agreed to fight Shinji you and Rei go report to test area 4 Ritsuko will meet you there. And Shinji, I am proud of you."

Shinji stared at him. It seemed a like a cruel joke. If his father had any kind of sense of humor he would have thought it was a joke. Ever since his mother died he'd fought to get his father's attention and approval. He'd dreamed of one day hearing those exact words from him. But hearing them now, under these circumstances, they meant nothing to him.

"Yeah right," he said and left with Rei still on his arm.

"Wait a moment," Gendo said as Misato made to leave as well.

"Yes Commander?"

"When the battle starts I want you to send out Unit 01 only, hold Unit 00 in reserve."

"What?" She asked sharply. "Why would you do that?! You want Shinji to go fight all alone after seeing his reaction? We have no idea just how strong the enemy may be and despite his training Shinji isn't really a soldier, there's no telling how he'll perform. Our best chance is to send both EVAs out at once."

"No," Gendo told her. "Unit 00 is still having issues and I don't want Rei put in unnecessary danger."

"You don't want to put _Rei _in unnecessary danger? Even when that means putting Shinji, your _son_, in greater danger?"

"I don't need you to tell me Shinji is my son Officer Katsuragi," Gendo told her behind folded his hands. His eyes were still empty, his voice still detached. "I am certain he will be fine, it is best he learn how to fight seriously. I want him thrown into battle alone and forced to do whatever he has to, to survive."

Misato stared at him.

"Carry out my orders Officer Katsuragi."

She came to rigid attention and snapped off a salute. "Sir, yes sir!" _You heartless bastard. _She stormed out of the room.

Ikari Gendo remained in his seat and looked at the image of the third angel approaching through space. _I will see you again soon my precious Yui._


	3. The first battle

Three generals of the JSSDF sat within Central Dogma, with all of NERV's advanced defenses and surveillance systems it was the best possible location to direct the battle from.

"The Fourth armor division is in place," one of them said. "We have six artillery and heavy rocket regiments ready as well as 12th and 32nd UN air assault squadrons."

"And of course we have our trump card ready as a last resort," another said.

"Even if we suffer heavy losses we'll definitely stop the enemy!" The first general declared and all three of them nodded confidently.

At his desk Gendo listened to all this with silent contempt. _You fools know nothing at all._

"Sensors indicate the enemy is approaching the coast," a technician called out.

The angel had already crashed into the ocean and had been approaching underwater ever since. All eyes turned to the massive overhead screen. The image displayed there for the moment was of the blood red ocean. The lifeless waters flowed in and out of a stained beach as the tanks of the Fourth Armored Division waited.

All at once the water stirred. Rising up out of it like some prehistoric beast the angel at last appeared.

"Open fire!" One of the generals screamed.

It was an unnecessary order for even as he was shouting it the screen filled with fire as missiles were launched and exploded before the fearsome angel. As each missile exploded a wall of energy momentarily became visible and then vanished.

"As we suspected," Fuyutsuki whispered. "The angel is protected by an AT field. Nothing they have will be able to penetrate that."

"Yes," Gendo responded just as quietly.

The generals were all shouting excitedly as they watched the Angel stride out of the sea and onto land.

"Concentrate all firepower! Don't let it get any further!"

Now that it was within range the tanks and conventional artillery opened up as well.

Fuyutsuki looked on with a sad grimace. They still didn't understand how useless it was. All they could really do was distract it for a bit and maybe delay it for a few minutes. "Shouldn't we tell them to withdraw?" He whispered urgently.

"No," Gendo replied. "They need to realize that humanity's fate rests in NERV's hands." _In my hands._

XXXXXXXXXX

Rei and Shinji were in their plug suits sitting at a table near the dressing room. It had been decided to leave them alone once Ritsuko had finished the last of their prep work. No one gave them any updates of the battle (they weren't even aware the battle had started.) They were told to just 'relax' until they were called on.

Shinji's right foot tapped nervously as he waited, his eyes constantly straying to the clock on the wall. Ever since his father had first brought him here his life had been anything but normal. He'd begun to pilot as a twelve years old, and even as a kid he'd had some idea of just how weird and bizarre his life was. It was like something straight out of a manga; a child in control of a giant robot.

Kensuke would have died of jealousy if he'd known.

Despite the hardships of his strange life a lot of it had been fun. What kid _wouldn't_ enjoy getting to shoot a gigantic gun bigger than a 747? Piloting an EVA was an unbelievable rush and more fun than anything in the world. (Except for sex.) For him piloting had been fun and a way to help his father and Rei. He knew it was important work but that never mattered to him. He wanted to be able to help and work with Rei and perhaps earn his father's praise.

The idea that he was being trained to _fight _and maybe get killed had never crossed his mind. He'd been told about the truth behind Second Impact and the potential danger of more Angles arriving one day. But it hadn't seemed real to him. The idea of the Angels coming to attack humanity seemed more like a religious story than anything concrete. Yes Second Impact had happened, but there'd been no sign of alien beings bent on destroying humanity since then. Perhaps they would come… _some day_, but that had nothing to do with him helping his father's work.

Then suddenly they showed him this monster and said, 'you have to fight this or everyone will die.' And his father was surprised he was freaked out by that?! Couldn't he understand that he wasn't ready for this? That there was absolutely no way he could be ready for this? Did his father really expect him to just nod his head and say, 'all right?'

"Are you nervous Shinji?" Rei asked him. For her part she had simply sat there and relaxed.

"Of course I am Rei! How can you not be?"

"What is the point in being nervous when we have no choice?" She asked him.

He put his head down on the table and shut his eyes. "I'm not as brave as you Rei; maybe I'm just a coward."

He felt her place a gentle hand on the back of his head. "You are scared," she said. Her words were tender and filled with concern. There was no accusation in them, only understanding and comfort. "It's all right to be scared. It is a normal human reaction when facing the unknown."

He opened his eyes and looked at her. The worry he saw on her face was for him, she never worried about herself. She continued to slowly stroke the back of his head, trying to calm him. She was the only one who truly cared about him, the only one who loved him.

"Aren't you scared?" He asked her. "Aren't you scared of dying?"

"No," she said. "I am not afraid of dying. There is only one thing that I fear."

"What's that?"

Without warning she leaned close and kissed his cheek. "Losing you Shinji." She had that gentle smile he loved so much, that smile that was only for him.

Sitting up he put his arms around her waist and pulled her out of her seat and onto his lap. Squeezing her tight he shut his eyes again and pressed his face against the side of her neck. He breathed in her scent, that wonderful odor that always set his mind at ease.

"I love you so much," he said trying to hold back his tears. "Promise me we'll always be together! No matter what happens!"

"I promise," she said softly. She put her hand to his cheek and caressed it. "We will always be together Shinji. To the end of the world and beyond."

They didn't say much more.

XXXXXXXXXX

"That got it!" One of the generals shouted excitedly.

"Nothing can withstand a direct hit from an N-2 mine," the other agreed.

"Let's get confirmation of that," the third general said. The screen was awash in red and yellow flames. "Nothing we did touched it; we need to make sure it's been destroyed."

"It has to be," the first said.

Out of the mass of flames a humanoid image appeared.

"NO!!" they shouted.

"Our trump card didn't work?" One of them said in complete dejection.

"It seems we have nothing that can even damage the enemy." The second general said.

_So at last you understand, _Gendo thought.

Shortly after the failed N-2 strike and phone call came in. After answering it the generals approached Gendo.

"It seems we have no choice but to leave this in your hands now."

Gendo gave a single curt nod. "Do not fear, this is the reason NERV exists."

As the generals departed Gendo looked to Misato.

"Get the pilots ready and prepare to launch Unit 01."

"Yes Commander Ikari," Misato said in clipped tones.

XXXXXXXXXX

After a hasty announcement Shinji and Rei had each gone to the launch bay where their EVAs waited. Shinji climbed into his plug and it was inserted into Unit 01. Honey colored liquid filled the interior of the plug. The first time he'd ever been immersed in LCL he'd held his breath as long as he could, convinced he was going to drown. Now he breathed it in without a second thought.

As always there was a faint salty taste to it, a bit like blood. It also had an odor that was just like Rei's. He always felt the most calm and at peace when he was here inside Unit 01, emerged in the LCL. _I wonder why that is, _he suddenly thought. _This is the most powerful weapon ever built. Should a person actually feel comfortable sitting here? _He wondered if that meant he was weird.

A slight electrical current was run through the LCL, causing it to become transparent and establishing the mental link between him and his EVA. As long as this link was active he 'was' Unit 01. In a way he had two bodies.

He lifted his right hand and made a fist. Outside Unit 01 did the same with its right arm and hand.

"All initial contacts are right," Shinji heard the usual commands go out over his com link.

"Connect mutual lines."

"Synchronization rate at 70.1%."

"All harmonics within tolerable levels."

Up in Central Dogma Ritsuko had only the slightest frown. "His sync rate is slightly lower than usual."

"Is that a problem?" Misato asked worriedly. The enemy was almost to the outskirts of Tokyo 3.

"No," she said. "It is still higher that Rei's which is 68.9, that's an improvement from yesterday. I suppose it stands to reason that she is having a better time handling the situation."

Misato nodded, that made sense to her too given their reactions to finding out what was happening. _And of course everything will fall on Shinji. _She opened her com link to both pilots. "Shinji, prepare for launch. You'll be armed with an automatic rifle; all you have to do is just point and click. It'll be just like in practice. Just shoot the target and destroy it. Rei, I want you to hold in place for now."

"Hold in place?" She asked. "Aren't I going to launch as well?"

"No," Misato informed her. "The Commander has concerns about your Unit freezing up. Unit 01 will deal with the target alone for now while you remain in reserve."

_Father is sending me out all alone? _Shinji thought in a panic. _I'm not afraid. I'm not afraid. I'm not afraid. I'm not afraid. _He repeated the mantra silently in his head again and again. _I have to do this. I have to do this. I have to do this. _He had to face this to protect Rei.

"Shinji-kun? Are you all right?" Misato asked.

"I'm fi… fine, I'm not scared at all!"

_Poor kid, he's terrified. _She thought sympathetically. _How did we get in this spot? Putting the fate of the whole world in the hands of a fourteen year old boy? _"You can do this Shinji! I believe in you and so does everyone else! Have faith in yourself and everything will be fine!" She prayed with all her heart that she was telling the truth. "Are you ready?"

"Yes," he said.

"Prepare to launch Unit 01!"

"Release first lock bolt."

"Released."

"Move umbilical bridge."

"Release second lock bolt."

"Released."

"Remove first and second binding."

"Cancel first through fifteenth safety locks."

"Internal battery fully charged."

"Socket for external power supply operational."

"Moving EVA 1 to launch pad 1," First Lieutenant Miya announced.

Shinji took deep breaths and took what comfort he could in being surrounded by Rei's scent. His heart was pounding and his hands were shaking. The image he had seen before was replaying in his head. _I'm not afraid. I'm not afraid. I'm not afraid. I'm not afraid. Oh god please someone help me!!_

As his EVA was locked into place a series of metal blast doors snapped open above him.

"The course is clear, all green!" Miya told them.

Misato tuned to look over her shoulder to the Commander. He was sitting there his hands folded before his face passively looking on. "Are you sure about this Commander?" She knew he wouldn't change his mind, but for Shinji's sake she had to ask.

"Yes," he answered. "Continue."

_Bastard. _She turned back. _Good luck Shinji! _"Launch Unit 01!"

The platform rocketed him and his EVA up towards the streets of Tokyo 3. He grunted at the sudden G forced pushing him down. An intersection opened up as a hidden trap door slid open to reveal the terminus point of the gigantic elevator. Unit 01 came to the end of its ride and was standing in the middle of Tokyo3. A large building right by the intersection popped open to reveal a massive fun and clip of ammunition. As he had done many, many times before in practice he reached out and took the gun, slapping the butt of the weapon to his EVA's shoulder and bringing it up to firing position.

Only a few seconds later he felt the earth shake.

Around the corner came the third angel. It simply stood there about 1,000 yards away, as though it were just looking him over.

Shinji stared at it and felt his body begin to shake._ I'm not afraid. I'm not afraid. I'm not afraid. I'm not…_

"Shinji what are you doing?!!" Misato screamed. "Shoot!!!"

"Aaaaaaaahhhhhhhh!!" His finger squeezed and the rifle fired.

The first battle between humanity and the Angels had begun.


	4. Sleeper Awake

The muzzle of his huge rifle blazed and a stream of bullets were sent straight into the angel's chest. Spent shell casings, each larger than a car, flew from the rifle's chamber. Shinji kept squeezing his trigger finger staring out as the bullets hit their target. The angel stumbled back a step and raised its arms as if to ward them off. Blazing away at full automatic it took no more than 15 seconds to run through all of his ammunition. The rifle gave off a final 'click' and it ceased fire. Shinji kept squeezing as though that would help.

The firing halted the angel lowered its arms.

XXXXXXXXXX

"The enemy has suffered no apparent damage!" Miya cried.

"Get him more ammunition, now!" Misato shouted.

But even as she said it the angel moved, leaping to cover the distance between it and Unit 01 in a single jump.

XXXXXXXXXX

"Yaaah!" Shinji cried in sudden panic as he saw what was about to happen. Reacting to his will the EVA began to get out of the way but was unable to. Crashing down on top of Unit 01 both it and the angel smashed a couple building to rubble.

Sitting on top of Unit 01 the angel grabbed its right arm and began viciously pounding its head.

Inside the plug Shinji cried in pain. He'd know he could feel what his EVA did when it walked about or picked something up, until this moment he had never imagined he could feel pain through it as well. He felt a heavy weight pressing down on his chest. His right arm was being held out at a weird angle behind his head and felt like it was being torn from its socket. His face felt as though he was being punched right in the eye.

"Shinji!" Misato called through the com link. "Activate your AT field!"

Through his pain he thought about creating a wall in front of his body.

Answering his will Unit 01's AT field activated. A wall of energy instantly formed in front of it. The angel was thrown off and sent flying to land amidst another block of building.

"Shinji! We're sending you more ammunition, hurry and reload!" Misato ordered.

"Ri… right," he said shakily. His face felt sore and his right arm hurt like hell. He found he could still use it though. The façade building that had been used to send him his rifle again opened up to reveal two clips of ammunition. As he'd done in practice so often before he ejected the spent clip and slapped in a fresh one. The spare he put on a slot on his EVA that was designed just to hold it. He brought the rifle up to firing position and sighted the enemy that was only just now getting back up. As soon as his targeting computer showed him he was locked on he squeezed the trigger. Again his bullets hit the angel. Again they seemed to do it no harm. This time the angel ran directly at him. He kept firing at it the entire time to no effect.

The angel reached him and slapped the useless gun away. It then reached out to grab him only to be halted by the AT field.

"What do I do?!" Shinji cried in terror.

"This is bad!" Ritsuko called out. "His heart rate is climbing fast and nerve connections are beginning to break! His sync rate has fallen to 53.5% He won't be able to fight much longer!"

Misato looked back at Commander Gendo. He appeared completely unmoved by his sons desperate situation. "Commander, should we launch Unit 00?"

"No," Gendo replied calmly.

"Unbelievable," she muttered beneath her breath. She then switched her com link back on. "Shinji calm down! You can do this! The enemy's core, that big red ball in the middle of its chest, that's the weak spot! If you destroy it you'll kill the angel!"

"How?" He cried. "I've lost my gun!"

"Use the prog knife! You need to hurry before your AT field gives out!" _And before you lose control of your EVA._

Within the plug Shinji nodded. He had to fight back, he had to win. Reaching behind himself the handle of the prog knife popped out. A huge blade it resembled a monstrous Bowie knife. Taking firm hold with his right hand he stabbed at the angel's core only to have a wall of energy appear and block him.

"It has an AT field too! What now?"

"Calm down Shinji!" Misato called. "You can break through it! Tear an opening and you can use your knife."

The angel was also trying to smash through his AT field. It had landed a series of punches that had weakened it slightly. Now out of its right wrist came a lance of glowing energy. It struck the AT field near Unit 01's head. The field glowed and a thin carrack appeared, the lance drew back and struck again, the crack began to widen.

"The AT field's energy output has dropped to 74%," Ritsuko called out.

"Hurry Shinji!" Misato yelled. "You've got to kill it!"

"I have to kill it," he whispered to himself. Then more loudly. "I have to kill it." He had to, not just to save himself but to save Rei too. "I have to kill it!!" He shouted.

His left hand reached out and struck the angel's AT field. He could _feel_ it. It was a flat wall against his hand, but it wasn't a wall of steel or brick. He pushed with his hand it gave way; it was like pressing a wall of tightly stretched cloth. As he pushed it started giving way.

Both opponents stood there in the middle of the city concentrating totally on the attack and relying on their AT fields to protect them. The angel continued to hammer away with its lance, causing the crack to spread and begin to widen dangerously.

"AT field down to 23% power output!" Ritsuko called. "It won't last much longer!"

_Please hurry Shinji! _Misato thought.

Inside the plug Shinji's left land pushed out in front of him while his right was clenching a knife that felt as real to him as could be. _Tear damn it! Tear open! _Gruntingwith effort he pushed with his left hand. It felt as though the cloth were ripping.

In Central Dogma Ritsuko suddenly saw his sync rate reverse and momentarily climb up to 80.1.

Shinji felt and saw the angel's AT field tear open, even as his own failed.

"Die!" He screamed and slammed his right hand forward at the same instant the angel's lance tore into Unit 01's right eye and clean through the back of its head. What looked like blood gushed from the wound.

Shinji howled in pain as he felt something stab into his eye. Even as he screamed his prog knife stabbed into the angel's core, breaking it open.

Sensing its imminent death the angel leapt onto unit 01 and wrapped itself about the EVA.

Ritsuko saw the angel's power readings and realized what was about to happen. "It's going to…"

Unit 01 and the angel disappeared within a massive explosion as the enemy self-destructed.

XXXXXXXXXX

He concentrated on the music.

For a child a cello was a huge instrument almost as tall as he was. He was sitting in his room practicing. One of his teacher's had told him he had a natural talent for the cello and had spoken to his father about it. His father had actually come to him and asked him if he would like to take lessons in that stern unforgiving way he had.

It was very rare for his father to talk to him, and even rarer for him to get a choice in anything. He had liked the idea of being good at something and had said yes.

After that a little old man named Shinzo had started coming to his apartment three times a week after he got done with class. He was a kindly old man and the hour lessons were pleasant, Shinzo-sensei was patient and forgiving whenever he made a mistake and always praised him when he did well. Shinji liked to imagine him as a kindly grandfather. He came to really enjoy playing eh cello and so practiced on his own whenever he could.

"What are you doing?"

He abruptly stopped to look up and see a little blue haired girl standing at his doorway.

"Hello Ayanami," he said a little coolly. He honestly didn't know what to make of the girl. On the one hand he was jealous of her because she got the attention from tousan that he craved. For whatever reason his father liked her and smiled at her when he would barely say two words to him. But on the other hand she was nice to him whenever almost no one else was. She would come over a lot just to play with him. She was sort of weird, she would say strange things and was always asking questions about what he was feeling or why he did something. He wasn't sure whether or not he liked her.

Looking at him curiously with her red eyes she stepped into his room. "What are you doing?" She asked again.

"I'm practicing the cello," he answered. "Isn't it obvious?" He asked feeling a little annoyed. She really liked asking him dumb questions.

She missed his tone as she usually did. "Do you mind if I watch?"

"I don't care," he said. He began playing again.

She sat cross legged on his bed and stared at him in silence.

He tried to ignore her but after about fifteen minutes he finally stopped and glared at her. "Are you really going to just sit there and stare at me?"

"You said it was all right," she reminded him.

"Don't you have anything better to do?"

"I came here to play with you," she told him. "But since you're busy doing this I thought I would just listen instead." She offered him one of her small smiles. "I like listening to you play Shinji."

Whenever she smiled at him like that he always got this weird feeling in his chest.

"Is it not all right? Do you want me to go?"

"It's fine," he said feeling a little guilty. He began to play again. "If you want you could learn to play an instrument too, that way we could practice together." He was just saying that to be polite.

She took his words seriously as she always did. "All right."

XXXXXXXXXX

As Shinji opened his eyes he could hear sweet music playing. He realized he was in a strange bed looking up at a strange ceiling. Looking around he saw some flowers on a nightstand by his bed. He also saw Rei sitting in a chair beside him. She was playing her violin. He recognized the tune, it was Bach's 'Sleepers Awake.' _Well that's fitting I suppose._

When she saw him with eyes open she immediately stopped. "Shinji, you're awake."

Smiling at her he put his hands together to clap a bit. "That was lovely Rei."

Her cheeks darkened just a little and she lowered her eyes. "I heard one of the nurse's mention that patients recovered faster if they were exposed to music."

"Well thank you, I can't think of a better way to wake up." He looked around the room. It was bare except for his bed, and IV rack, the stand and flowers, and the single chair Rei was sitting on. The single large window was open wide to allow a maximum of sunlight and there was a faint antiseptic odor. "Am I in the hospital?"

Rei nodded. "You have been here for a full day; you don't have any serious injuries."

"Have you been with me the whole time?" She again nodded. "Thanks Rei."

"You don't need to thank me Shinji, where else would I be when you need me?" She looked down again, this time in discomfort. "I am sorry I didn't help you when you really needed me."

"That's okay," he said immediately. "I know it wasn't your decision." _It was my father's. _Wanting to change the subject he looked at the flowers. There were two displays of them. "Did you get me those?"

"I got one," she confirmed. "That is customary when someone is injured isn't it?"

"Yeah, thank you. Who got the other one?" He asked curiously.

"Chief Operations Officer Misato."

_Of course it wouldn't have come from my father, _he thought bitterly. "Well that was nice of her, I'll have to thank her."

Getting up from her chair she approached him. "I'll go and let the staff know you are awake." She placed a warm kiss on his cheek. "I am happy that you are all right Shinji-kun."

"Thanks Rei," he answered quietly. _As long as I have you it's all right._

XXXXXXXXXX

"What a mess," Misato said. She and Ritsuko were in a helicopter over the blast sight. A ten block radius of Tokyo 3 had been leveled when the enemy self-destructed. Fortunately Unit 01 had not been seriously damaged and Shinji had not been seriously hurt.

"It could have been worse," Ritsuko said prudently. "It's quite possible future battles _will_ be worse."

"Future battles," Misato said with a grimace.

"What's wrong?" Ritsuko teased. "I thought you were eager to bring on a showdown with the Angels."

"I still feel that way," Misato said with a snap. "Mankind will never be truly safe as long as the Angels are out there to threaten us. But if this first encounter is any indication we'll need to strengthen our forces if we're going to succeed."

"Well that's certainly true," Ritsuko agreed. "As far as that goes Unit 02 should be coming here before long and Unit 03 is nearing completion."

Misato nodded. "That's all well and good, we can use all the help we can get. Hopefully when we have them we'll actually put them to use."

"You don't agree with the Commander's decision to rely on Unit 01?"

"Do you?" Misato said in surprise. So far as she was concerned the battle had come damn close to being a total disaster. The fact that Shinji had pulled it off at the end didn't change that.

"My job is to make sure the equipment is in the best possible condition, I have nothing to do with how things get deployed."

Misato gave an unhappy grunt, she loved her old college friend but Ritsuko did tend to get lost in her work at times. "We may have more EVAs soon but for right now we have exactly two. Losing even one would be a disaster not just for NERV but for all mankind. We shouldn't put one of them in extreme hazards for the sake of protecting the other."

Ritsuko smiled. "Are you worried about protecting the EVA or Shinji?"

"Both," she said. "One's no good without the other."

Ritsuko nodded. "Well hopefully the Commander is more careful in the future."

"Let's hope."


	5. Return to normalcy

Several miles beyond the outskirts of Tokyo 3 was a small lake surrounded by fields of green grass. Unlike the world's oceans the water in the lakes and streams and rivers were still clear and teeming with life. All along the edges of the lake were perhaps a hundred men with fishing poles eager to catch something for dinner. On the lake itself were perhaps a dozen tiny row boats with more fishermen. Fifteen years since Second Impact things were not as desperate as they once had been. Millions of poor Japanese had starved to death in the decade following the disaster. Japan had been overpopulated since the beginning of the twentieth century and had relied on food imports and fishing to keep its population fed. When all sea life died out and crops failed all around the world there was no longer enough food. The lucky ones went hungry while the unlucky died. Only the very rich or very important (like Ikari Shinji and the key members of NERV) had plenty to eat.

And Japan had actually been lucky compared to other poorer nations such as India, Pakistan, Malaysia, and Ethiopia. Those countries and others had seen not only famine but civil wars, nuclear exchanges, and mass slaughters. India alone lost over 700 million people from hunger, disease, and war.

These days things were better, though there were still people slowly starving in the poorer parts of the world. Most people at least had enough to eat, largely due to the fact there were so many fewer mouths now. Even so, meat was a real luxury. A steak cost about as much as an ordinary person would make in a year. Regular people might have a little chicken or fish perhaps once a month or on holidays. Artificial meat (specially flavored soy) was the best most people could do. So even though most Japanese were no longer hungry the chance to catch and actually eat a real live fish was not something to be ignored.

In that area at least Shinji had been lucky. His father being who he was he had never gone hungry even during the worst of times. When he'd begun piloting his EVA he'd become an official member of NERV and even started getting monthly paychecks. (He was officially designated a _pilot _of the UN's military air reserve and commissioned a second lieutenant.) His NERV ID gave him access to special stores and commissaries that were always well stocked with meat and other luxury items and he made enough to eat well. (His father never intervened with his finances and he was able to spend his paychecks as he saw fit even as a 12 year old.)

Ironically though even though he was among those who could eat meat and fish pretty regularly he was a vegetarian. That was because Rei refused to eat meat of any kind, she even refused to touch artificial meat. So Shinji had made them cheese sandwiches, potato salad, egg salad, and miso soup for their picnic. He was used to it and didn't mind it since it made Rei happy.

Having had their picnic lunch the two of them were relaxing beneath the hot winter sun. The older people talked about seasons and about cold wet months. Shinji and Rei though had grown up in the world following Second Impact and had only known the current Japan where the weather was always hot and winter was not noticeably wetter than the summer. For Shinji the terms winter summer had nothing to do with the weather at all, they related to the school year.

Lying on the soft grass with his head resting on his girlfriend's lap Shinji relaxed and tried to forget all about angels and battles and hospitals for awhile. Rei was running her fingers slowly through his hair and he was feeling about as calm and tranquil as possible.

"Should we give our guards some of our left over sandwiches?" Rei asked.

Shinji opened one eye to look over at the two soldiers standing beside a dark green Hummer VS. They were leaning against their car just casually talking to each other and seeming to enjoy the pleasant day. The soldiers had brought them out here and when they were ready to go would take them back. They stayed about a hundred yards away, far enough to allow him and Rei some privacy, close enough to keep them in sight. His father had insisted on this precaution whenever the two of them went anywhere other than home or school. If an Angel suddenly appeared they could be back in NERV headquarters in less than 15 minutes.

They were a reminder that things had changed.

"We'll give them some when we go, the rest we'll save for dinner," he said. He shut his eyes again. "Tomorrow's Sunday so I guess you'll be having dinner with my father?"

"Yes," Rei answered. "He has not cancelled so I assume that to be the case."

"Nice to know he can still make time for you," Shinji said. Trying, and not quite succeeding, at keeping the bitterness from his voice. When he had still lived at the old apartment he had very rarely seen his father. He usually returned after he was asleep and was gone by the time he woke up. The only time he had gotten to see him regularly was for dinner on Sundays, and that was because Rei would always join them for that. That remained the case after Rei moved in with them. And when the two of them had moved out his father had insisted on continuing the Sunday tradition.

With Rei, but not with him.

"Does it bother you that I have dinner with Commander Ikari?"

"Of course not," he said.

"If it bothers you I can stop having dinner with him."

"It's fine," he insisted.

"You say that but I don't believe you mean it."

Shinji opened both eyes to look up into her face. She had that calm perceptive expression she usually did. Except when she was smiling at him that was the face she normally wore. After all their time together he could read her better than anyone else. Though no one but him would ever notice it there was a slight downward turn at the corner of her lips.

"You like having dinner with my father don't you?"

"Yes," she said.

"How come?" He asked.

"Because it makes him happy."

He frowned. "But does it make _you_ happy?"

"Yes," she told him. "Commander Ikari is important to me and it pleases me to make him happy."

He closed his eyes wishing he had never brought the subject up. He had _never_ understood why it was Rei was so important to him. Yes, it had turned out she was the pilot of EVA Unit 00. But he _couldn't _have known that from the start.

Could he?

"Why does it always make you unhappy when I go and see him?" She asked, unknowingly continuing a conversation he wanted to drop.

"It doesn't bother me."

"Then why are you always in a bad mood whenever I come back from seeing him?"

"Everything that touches my father puts me in a bad mood I guess," he said. "I don't want to talk about him anymore."

"All right," she began running her fingers through his hair again. She would have liked to have brought Shinji and Commander Ikari closer together. She had asked him to invite Shinji along but he had always declined, saying his interest was in her not in Shinji. Other efforts to get them to spend time together proved equally useless. "It will be good to be back in school Monday."

"Yes," he agreed. "I never thought I could actually look forward to it so much."

It would be really good to get back to class; it would be another return to normalcy and another chance to pretend Angels did not exist and that he was just a regular High School kid.

XXXXXXXXXX

"Just relax Lieutenant Sagawa," Misato said through the com link. "Just concentrate on lifting your right arm. Picture yourself lifting your right arm up to your side."

"Yes maam," the officer replied.

Misato looked at the monitors. Some displayed Sagawa within the plug lifting his right arm while having his eyes closed, presumably concentrating on the necessary mental image. Other monitors displayed Unit 01. The EVA remained utterly motionless.

"Is there _any _response at all?" A frustrated Misato asked after she shut off the com link.

Ritsuko turned an amused eye to her. "Sure, he has a sync rate of 1.2% that actually makes him the best of the six candidates we've tested so far."

Misato muttered something foul and very unladylike beneath her breath. Anything below 20% and the EVA would not move at all, a sync rate of at least 30% was considered the bare minimum for coordinated activities like walking or firing a rifle. "Damn it, it really is useless." She'd been hoping to replace Shinji and Rei with actual military pilots.

"Are you surprised?" Ritsuko asked. "I told you from the beginning this wouldn't work. Rei and Shinji were selected because tests indicated they would be good matches for their EVAs. The EVA nerve net is highly selective and is only compatible with a bare handful of individuals. It's so selective Rei can barely control Unit 01 and Shinji can't operate Unit 00 at all. You _do _remember those tests right?"

"I remember them," she said in annoyance. "Still, it would be better to entrust the fate of the world to an actual adult who is a soldier rather than to a couple High School kids, don't you think."

"Sure," Ritsuko agreed. "_If _it were an actual option. But if it had been we would have used them right from the start instead of relying on 12 year olds. I'm afraid in this case the EVAs have final say in who pilots them."

"Why is that exactly?" Misato asked. Even though she was Chief of Operations she knew almost nothing about the EVAs design and construction. That was strictly Ritsuko's domain. "I mean what sense does it make to build something that is so hard to handle that only two or three people on earth can actually do it? I mean how useful would an F-24 be if only one individual could fly it?"

"F-24's are human inventions created and built entirely with human technology. That means to the limit of our science we can make them as 'user friendly' as possible. EVAs are another matter."

"You saying they're _not _human technology?" Misato asked quietly. There had been rumors about the EVAs since their creation. The most persistent one being they were at least partially built with alien technology. Certainly they're abilities went way beyond what current level of robotics was capable of.

"What I'm saying is that there's a trade off," Ritsuko answered deliberately ignoring her question. "The EVAs are a bit of a miracle, you can't expect to use them the same way you would a weapon that comes off an assembly line. I told you from the start this wouldn't work."

"The Commander agreed to let me test some new candidates," Misato said.

Ritsuko grinned at her. "Sure he did, he also let the JSSDF smash themselves against the third angel."

Misato made an ugly sound. Commander Gendo had done that to convince the JSSDF that what they were trying to do with useless.

"Pardon me maam," Pilot Sagawa's voice came in. "Should I try something else?"

Misato opened the com link. "No, that's all right, prepare for extraction. Thank you for your efforts today lieutenant."

"Yes maam," his voice was filled with disappointment. He had to know he would never get another chance at an EVA.

"Shall we prepare candidate number 7?" Ritsuko asked. "Maybe he'll manage to get up to 2%."

"No," Misato said in defeat. "Send them home. I guess we'll have to try and improve the abilities of the pilots we already have."

XXXXXXXXXX

Commander Ikari sat at a desk in a darkened room. In front of him were five very old and very powerful men. They were the leaders of Seele, the secret organization that held the real power behind the UN and Japanese government. They were the ones who had supported Gendo in creating NERV along with the EVAs. They controlled the billions necessary to keep his organization functioning and meant to control him even as he aimed to control others.

They had not spent so many billions out of a simple desire to defend the human race. Rather there was another goal they cherished and valued far more, that was saving themselves. All of them were of an advanced age and could not hope to live for much longer. For them their ultimate goal, the Human Instrumentality Project, was nothing less than a way to cheat death and gain a kind of immortality.

What the majority of their fellow human beings might have thought of their plans did not matter to them in the least.

"So the angels came again," one of them to his right said. "Just as was predicted in the Dead Sea Scrolls. The final time approaches."

"I suppose it's good to know that all out massive investment was not wasted," one of the men on the left said. "Of course we have repair costs for Unit one; those alone could bankrupt a country."

"Keeping the EVAs in fighting condition is the best imaginable use of money," Gendo said passionlessly. If you did not agree you would never have created NERV to begin with."

The leaders of Seele turned unhappy eyes to him. They would have been far happier to have seen him worried and intimidated. They would also have liked it if he had been more appreciative of all they had given him up 'til now.

"We will take your budget requests under consideration," Keel Lorenz, the man sitting at the head of the table stated. He was the true leader of Seele and a very dangerous man. "Whatever we give you make sure it is spent wisely."

"Of course," Gendo replied.

"We expect your public relations to keep the truth hidden," another member said. "The last thing we need is mass panic and the truth coming out."

"There are already rumors spreading," a man on the right said unhappily. "People are frightened."

"Well naturally they are," the original member said. "There was a huge battle against some unknown monster in Japan's capital. There's no way to completely hide that."

"So long as people are uncertain as to exactly what the truth is that will be enough," a man on the left said. "We know there will be more battles to come. The situation will only grow worse as we near the end."

"So long as we can keep control of things everything will work out as it should," one of them said. "The Dead Sea Scrolls point the way; we must adhere to them, no matter what."

"No matter what," a couple of the others concurred. To Gendo they sounded a bit like religious zealots.

Having said what they came to four of the men vanished. Leaving only Gendo and Keel facing each other. Both men looked at the other while revealing nothing themselves.

"The budget and media concerns are all trivial matters in the end," Keel finally spoke. "The Human Instrumentality Project is all that truly counts. The end time is coming and we cannot afford to fall behind. You must have the project ready by the time Tabris arrives."

"Yes," Gendo answered.

The two men continued to stare at one another.

"If you fail I will destroy you utterly," Keel promised and then vanished.

The meeting over Gendo brought the lights up to reveal an empty room. _I will not fail, _Gendo thought as he got up to leave. _I will see you again Yui, no matter what._


	6. Tragic consequences

"Is your food good Rei?"

"Yes Commander Ikari, everything is delicious."

"Good," he said and returned to eating.

As Rei ate the usual silence descended upon them. Even the return of the Angels had not changed their usual routine. The food was ordered from a caterer and was always excellent. The commander sat at one end of the table and she sat at the other. He would ask her a few questions. 'How was school?' 'Did you have any issues with training?' 'Is there anything you need?' (He never asked about Shinji.) She would give him short direct answers. 'School was fine.' 'I had no issues.' 'I do not need anything at the present time.' He would nod his head and the meal would continue in oppressive silence.

These dinners were nothing at all like the ones she had with Shinji. The two of them would talk about what had happened in school or about what a pain Toji and Kensuke were being, about a particular lesson, about playing in the club that day or about training with Misato or Ritsuko. When she was with Shinji there were always things to talk about and things to make them both laugh. Even if the food here was a bit better she much preferred her dinners in their cramped kitchen, eating Shinji's cooking and listening to his complaints and thoughts.

She suddenly wondered why Commander Ikari kept asking her here to dinner every Sunday. He didn't seem to especially enjoy her company. Was it just out of a sense of obligation? Did he see it as part of the 'payment' to her for the services he expected to receive one day? Or was this just another way for him to keep an eye on her?

She knew why she came here.

She came to try and make him happy. In a way he was like a father to her, she would not exist now if not for him. Looked at in a certain way he had probably been _more _of a father to her than he had to Shinji. She appreciated what he had done for her and did care about him.

Even though she knew he was only using her.

"Commander Ikari, I would like to ask you something." She spoke up breaking the usual routine.

"What is it Rei?" He folded his hands in front of his face and sounded curious.

"During the battle, why did you hold my unit in reserve? Why did you force Shinji to fight all alone?"

"Did that bother you Rei?" He asked with a slight frown.

"Yes," she answered. "I know that because Shinji is an EVA pilot so there is no way for him to avoid dangerous situations. But there was no reason to have him fight alone when I was available."

"Unit 00 has had some mechanical issues," he replied. "I thought it best to hold your EVA out of live combat unless it proved absolutely necessary to have you engage."

Rei frowned slightly. "Both Chief Researcher Ritsuko and Chief Operations Officer Misato felt my EVA to be combat ready."

"It was my decision Rei," Gendo said just a little sternly to her. He could not recall her ever questioning anything he'd told her before. "In my judgment the possibility of your Unit suddenly freezing was too great to risk deploying you."

"Was that the only reason?" She asked quietly. She turned her red eyes to him.

Gendo was startled by the sudden sharp look in her eyes. Rei had always been strange and quiet, but also submissive and obedient. She did not seem like a detached child at the moment, she was looking at him with an air of someone in authority who wanted to hear the truth. As though _she _were the one with the power.

"What are you implying Rei?"

"Did you deliberately put Shinji in greater danger to try and protect me?"

He looked back at her unflinching. She met his gaze without any effort.

"No," he said.

Her face remained utterly passive and emotionless. Gendo was a master at reading people, and thought he knew Rei well. Now though he found he had absolutely no idea what was going through her mind.

"I see," she broke eye contact with him and silently returned to eating her meal.

The strange episode apparently now over Gendo decided to also return to his food. He would not say anything more for now but he would need to carefully analyze this strange behavior and determine its meaning.

XXXXXXXXXX

When she returned to the apartment the lights were all off and Shinji was already in bed.

Not wanting to disturb him she quietly undressed and slipped beneath the sheets beside him. His back was warm. She curled up next to him and put her face by the crook of his neck. She loved his warmth, and his scent put her at ease. She quickly fell asleep.

_I promised you we would always be together, _she thought as she drifted off. _And we will Shinji, to the end of the world and beyond._

XXXXXXXXXX

When the Hummer VS pulled up in front of the school it drew some attention. When the rear door opened and Shinji and Rei stepped out it was definitely noticed.

"Why do we need a ride all of a sudden?" Shinji grumbled. "We never did before." All he wanted was to return to normal. He didn't want things to change more than they had to.

"Commander Ikari wants to keep us safe at all times," Rei noted calmly. "From now on we will be escorted wherever we need to go, and we will have a security detachment at all times."

"What does that mean?" He asked nervously.

"When we are outside NERV there will be soldiers posted nearby to keep a watch over our surroundings."

"Wait a minute! So when we're at home or at school there are going to be soldiers close by?"

Rei nodded.

"Well that's great! That's just great!" He stormed off and Rei had to step quickly to keep by his side.

"It is just a precaution," Rei said.

"Sure it is," Shinji said darkly. "It's probably just another way for my father to try and keep us under his thumb."

XXXXXXXXXX

When they got to their homeroom they found even more changes waiting for them. Looking around over half the seats were empty. He spotted Kensuke in his usual spot but Toji was absent. Kensuke looked rather off as well. Normally he would be talking loudly about nothing, or making some dumb comment about him and Rei. Today he was just sitting there staring out the window. He also noted that class rep Hikari was not her usual self. Rather than sitting up straight and admonishing others to quiet down she sat slumped in her chair, her head lying listlessly on her desk.

"Where is everyone?" Shinji asked his remaining friend. "Didn't they hear school was open again?"

Kensuke turned to him and blinked a couple times as though gathering his thoughts. "A lot of people are leaving; their parents are getting out and transferring them to new schools. Can't really blame them since we just had a huge battle here." He grunted in disgust and corrected himself. "Oh, I mean since we had a 'terrorist incident.'" He rolled his eyes to show what he thought about that.

The official story was that there had been an incident initiated by the terrorist organization, 'Heaven's Approach.' They were a group of Christian Fundamentalists based in America who preached that Second Impact had been the beginning of the end times prophesied in their Bible. They proclaimed that the end of the world was coming and that mankind needed to prepare for judgment. They were known for violently attacking all those they felt to be immoral in an effort to ready humanity for the end.

People around the world might or might not believe that, but in Tokyo 3 too many had seen at least a glimpse of what had really happened. A little footage of the actual battle between Unit one and the angel had even made it onto the internet sparking a landslide of conspiracy and alien invasion theories. (Even Seele did not have the power to remove something once it had been seen and downloaded and unleashed on the internet.)

Shinji's eyes went to the empty seat beside Kensuke.

"Does that mean Toji is leaving too?"

Kensuke looked at him in surprise. "Didn't you hear?"

"Hear what?" Shinji asked. "I was in the hospital for a couple of days and haven't talked to anyone from class."

"Oh," he said dully. "I didn't know that, you okay? Since you're here I figure you must be."

"I'm fine," Shinji stated. "What about Toji?"

"He's dead," Kensuke said quietly. "He and his little sister were both crushed to death when their building got flattened."

Across the room Hikari began to cry.

XXXXXXXXXX

Rei found him up on the school roof huddled in a corner.

As soon as he'd heard what had happened to Toji he'd gotten up and run out of the class.

"Shinji," she said serenely and sat down next to him. "There's no reason for you to be upset by this."

"How can you say that?!" He looked up at her; tears were streaming down his face. "Toji and his sister died because of me!"

"No," she spoke with precision and absolute certainty. "They died because there was battle in the city. You did not choose to initiate that battle or to deliberately hurt anyone. You were forced to fight and you did the very best that you could. You are not to blame for the results."

"But I could have done better! If I had fought better there would have been less destruction and maybe they would be alive now!"

"And how could you have fought better?" She asked curiously. "Were you deliberately holding back during your battle?"

"No," he said.

"Did you know where Toji and his sister were?"

"No."

"Did you deliberately try to cause civilian casualties?" She asked in her calm remorseless voice.

"No! Of course not! All that was on my mind was killing the angel and protecting you!"

Her eyes widened a little. "Protecting me? Not the city or humanity or NERV headquarters, you were thinking about protecting me while you were fighting?"

"Yeah," he said. "Thinking about you was the only thing that gave me courage. I couldn't think about anything else." He looked down feeling defeated.

"That… that makes me very happy," she said in a small voice. She thought it might be selfish of her, but it really did make her happy to know that he valued her above everything else. She put an arm around him and placed his head on her shoulder. "It's all right Shinji, you're not to blame. You had to fight and you did the best that you could. You are not a god, you cannot save everyone, you cannot protect everyone, you can only do your best and hope it is enough."

"But Toji…"

"Might have died no matter what you did, or maybe if you had fought differently Kensuke would have died or maybe Haruka, or maybe a thousand other people who are alive now would have died instead. Would that have been any better?"

"No," he said weakly.

"You can only do what you can," she told him. "You did not set out to hurt Toji or anyone else. If you had not fought more people certainly would have died, and when you fought you did the best that you could. What more could you have done?"

He thought about it. When she put things that way they did make a certain melancholy sense. What could he have done? Even now he had no idea what building it had been, whether it was his EVA or the angel that had actually smashed it. Most of the buildings that had been destroyed had gotten leveled at the very end when the angel had self destructed. How could he have prevented that? He couldn't really see anything he could have done differently.

"Do you want to go home?" She asked. "I don't think we will get in any trouble if we just go home now."

He nodded. "Yeah, maybe that would be best."

XXXXXXXXXX

From the class room window Kensuke noticed as Shinji and Rei entered a military vehicle and sped away. That was definitely unusual.


	7. Second battle

It had been three weeks since the angel's attack. Tension at NERV and among the people of Tokyo 3 remained high even though there had been not further sightings of the enemy. The Japanese government had quickly and quietly relocated from the new capital back to the old one of Tokyo 2. Many ordinary people had evacuated, those that stayed mostly did so because of their financial situations. The only people moving into Tokyo 3 were an influx of JDSSF and UN military personnel. Even if their help was of questionable value.

Hidden beneath the city was the geofront that held NERV headquarters and the EVAs that were humanity's only real hope of salvation. The personnel who worked here lived up above in the city. Some of them had lost their homes during the battle; some had lost friends of loved ones. When they went up above they could see the destruction that still marred the great city. Emergency repairs had already been completed to the power grid and water lines. Some roads had been reopened and some metro tracks replaced to get the transport system functioning again. But it would take months if not years to replace the buildings. Rubble was cleared away where necessary, but once emergency rescue work had been completed the destruction was left pretty much alone. There were only so many resources and men available and they were needed for projects with a higher priority. The crater where the Angel had self destructed and the other ruined buildings were left there like permanent scars.

Despite all this only a handful of NERV personnel requested a transfer. Most of them understood the danger they were in, but they also understood how vital what they were doing was. In a way all of them, even the technicians and medical personnel, were soldiers standing on the front line of the most important war ever fought. There was an intense sense of pride and of duty among them that lead most to quietly do their jobs to the best of their ability day in and day out as they waited for the next battle to come.

XXXXXXXXXX

In his EVA Shinji could feel the weight of the rifle in his hands. He could feel the trigger resting against his index finger and the butt of his weapon jabbing against his shoulder. Within the plug his hands held nothing at all. In the training cage Unit 01 held a sensor rifle used for dry fire tests. A holographic image of the city was fed directly into Shinji's eyes. His senses all told him he was in the middle of the city again with the same angle approaching.

"Aim for the center and squeeze," he reminded himself. That was what Ritsuko had told him to do at the start of the training session. As the pretend angel ran towards him he calmly shifted his aim for the core that stood out like a great big bull's-eye. The targeting computer lit up and he squeezed his trigger finger. He 'felt' the trigger give way and even felt a slight recoil against his shoulder. His eyes saw the core explode and the angel collapse at his feet. There was no AT field to stop his bullets and the Angel did not blow itself up.

_If only it were really that easy, _he thought.

After about a twenty second delay the Angel disappeared as the simulation reset. His radar and other instruments alerted him that the enemy was coming from the south this time. He moved his feet and altered his line of sight to the direction where the Angel was coming from. "Aim for the center and squeeze… aim for the center and squeeze… aim for the center and squeeze," he repeated the mantra again and again. When the Angel again came within range he once more killed it with one shot.

In the control room Ritsuko was overseeing the session. Looking over the information on her computer screens she was somewhat unhappy.

Performance wise Shinji was doing wonderfully. He followed her instructions without the slightest question or hesitation. He was consistently hitting the target with his first shot, his accuracy stood at 94.5%. Simply outstanding, no complaints at all there. What had her concerned was his sync rate, it was 57.3%. That was still more than enough to give him full control of his EVA, but it represented a sharp decline since the battle. For the first time in a long while his sync rate was below Rei's. That was very worrisome.

"You don't look happy," Misato noted. She was speaking through a view screen from another control room. She was overseeing Rei's training at the moment. "Is Shinji having any problems?"

"No, not really, he's performing the tests well enough." Ritsuko admitted. "What has me concerned is that his sync rate has fallen into the 50s."

"The sync rate represents the mental compatibility between pilot and EVA through the EVA's nerve net. It requires the pilot to be mentally focused and to want to connect with the EVA." Misato said. "After the shock of what he went though is it any wonder he's not as focused as he used to be? A soldier's first taste of battle is always rough, since Shinji's still just a kid it must have been even harder to deal with." _And I know all about mental trauma._

"That may all be true, but it doesn't change the fact that there are bound to be more battles in the future." Ritsuko said. "Shinji will have to continue to fight no matter how hard it is."

"Spoken like someone who has never stepped onto a battlefield."

"I do my job," she said sharply. "And am I wrong in my assessment?"

"No, no, sorry," Misato held her hands up on the screen. "But you could be just a little more sympathetic to his situation. The human psyche isn't a computer program where you can just go in and write code to fix any problem. He's having a rough time and you need to be aware of it. We are asking a hell of a lot of him and he's doing his best."

"I know," she said sounding unhappy. She liked problems that she could figure out. Repairing damage to an EVA or programming their super computer Magi was child's play compared to figuring out what was going on inside of a person's mind. "Maybe we should have him do a heavy rotation of drills to help him refocus. We could have him train full time for…"

"I don't think that would be a good idea," Misato said quickly cutting off her friend before she got too far along. "What Shinji needs right now is peace and normalcy. He needs to be in familiar surroundings with his friends and classmates." _And with Rei. _"Taking him out of his comfort zone would probably only damage his sync rate even further."

"Maybe," Ritsuko said biting her lip. Given what her own personal life was like she knew she was anything but an expert on emotional stability. "How is Rei doing?"

Misato momentarily glanced away from the screen with Ritsuko's image to one displaying Rei within the plug. As usual she was utterly calm and performing her work with quiet efficiency. "She's doing just fine; her performance is on par with drills held before the attack."

"Unlike Shinji nothing bothers her."

Misato smirked. "You sound a little jealous."

"It's a good quality to have. Then again Rei hasn't had her first taste of battle yet. I can't help but feel she'll handle it better than Shinji has."

Misato recalled showing her the original image of the Angel and the way she had not even batted an eye at it. "I suppose she probably will."

XXXXXXXXXX

The next day they were once again dropped off by the military vehicle in front of class. By now the students had grown used to it and it elicited little immediate comment. There were already lots of rumors about them.

During first period all the students had laptops out and were using them to works out algebra problems. While doing this both Rei and Shinji received a message from one of their classmates. The message read:

'Are you the pilot of the giant robot? Y / N'

As soon as Rei read the message she typed N and hit reply.

Shinji's face flushed in shame. He imagined everyone blaming him for Toji's death, especially Kensuke and Hikari. Besides, after all his time working for NERV he'd had it drilled into his head never to discuss anything about it with civilians. He typed his answer; 'NO' and sent it.

There were no more messages after that.

XXXXXXXXXX

"Do you think they know about us?" Shinji asked quietly as he and Rei had lunch. There were a lot fewer students in the courtyard these days. Some of the ones who were out there though looked in their direction.

"I am sure it is nothing more than idle speculation," Rei said and nibbled on a cheese sandwich. "Just as they wonder about what we do at night."

Shinji flushed.

They didn't get to say much more before two soldiers came running up to them. "Please come with us immediately."

Shinji and Rein both nodded silently and hurried after them to the waiting car. As they went Shinji saw the amazement on everyone's faces. He didn't doubt there would be more rumors tomorrow.

The car was almost all the way back to NERV's secret entrance before the sirens began to shriek and a voice announced an emergency and called on people to proceed in an orderly manner to the nearest shelter.

XXXXXXXXXX

In Geo shelter 334 all the students and faculty of one of the local High Schools waited patiently.

With two exceptions.

"Shinji and Rei aren't here," Kensuke noted excitedly. "It must be true that the military came and got them! That proves it! One of them must be the giant robot's pilot."

"Don't be an idiot," Hikari huffed. "That doesn't prove anything! Shinji's father and Reis guardian is a really important man in some government agency. He probably pulled strings to get them to a special shelter."

"And how would he know about the attack before the general alarm sounded? How has he got so much influence with the military? And if he's so important why are Shinji and Rei still here? Haven't you noticed all the government officials have left? The only people still sticking around are military."

Hikari shrugged. "Well, maybe Shinji's dad is part of the military, it's possible."

"Even if that's true why would he keep Shinji and Rei here instead of sending them some place safe? They must have something to do with the giant robot!"

She shook her head wearily. "Are you even listening to yourself?"

"I don't care what you say it's obviously true!"

"Right, that one of them pilots a giant robot id the only _possible _reason they're not here now," she glared at him. "Don't go telling people about your crazy conspiracy theory."

"Whatever," he said and got up.

"Hey! Where do you think you're going?"

He grinned at her while holding his ever present home movie camera. "Nature calls, want to come with me to make sure I make it back safely?"

With a disgusted look on her face she yelled at him to just go.

Once away from everyone else Kensuke ignored the men's room, instead heading to a small stairwell he had found the last time he and Toji were here. He had no intention of spending this battle underground. Even if it was dangerous he wanted to see the fight and record it for the world.

XXXXXXXXXX

"The Fourth Angel, designated Shamshel, is approaching from the northwest," Lieutenant Mikoto called out. He was one of the technicians working in Central Dogma.

Surveillance cameras had it in sight and its image appeared above everyone. "Ugly looking thing isn't it?" Misato commented.

"It reminds me a little of a crawfish," Maya commented.

It had a long flat body with a shovel like head and several spiny 'legs' on its underside. It red core was visible beneath its head.

"The last time it took fifteen years for the Angels to return," Misato noted. "This time it has only been three weeks. And it came back while Commander Ikari was away."

Misato grinned. "What you don't have faith in me?"

"Ah, I didn't mean that Officer Misato!"

"Relax, I'm only teasing. Ritsuko, how are the preparations for launch?"

"Both EVA are green lighted," she answered.

Misato nodded, any other answer would have stunned her. She opened her com link to both pilots. "Shinji, Rei, prepare for launch. The objective is to destroy the enemy's core as quickly as possible and kill it."

"Roger," Shinji said dully.

"Understood Officer Misato," Rei answered.

_Aim for the center and squeeze_, Shinji thought. He was scared, but knowing Rei would be with him made this a little easier. _I can't screw up; I have to protect Rei no matter what. _ He also had to protect everyone else too, but Rei was his priority. He wondered if he was just being the typical guy trying to be strong for his girl.

"Shinji?" Rei's voice came over the com link. "Can I ask you something?"

"Sure Rei. What is it? Do you want advice about what it's like to go into a battle?" He was sure she was scared despite her calm appearance. He would do whatever he could to reassure her.

"No, I was wondering if you could make dango for dinner tonight."

"Huh?"

"Can you not make dango?" Rei asked. "I am sort of in the mood for it."

"Uh, okay, aren't you worried about this fight we're about to have?"

"No," she answered. "As long as we are together I am sure we will both be fine."

They monitored the whole conversation and Misato shook her head and laughed. "I guess you were right Ritsuko, she definitely is taking it better than Shinji did."

"So it would seem," she said. She noticed Shinji's sync rate suddenly climbed three points. _It looks like Rei talking to him about dango has settled his mind some._

"Move both EVAs onto the launch pads and get them ready for immediate launch." Misato called.

On the screen the Angel was surrounded by explosions as the JSSDF fired off missiles and shells at it. The Fourth angel ignored useless attack, continuing on towards Tokyo 3 without even bothering to destroy them.

XXXXXXXXXX

After a struggle Kensuke was able to force open the shelter's gate and get outside. Taking out his camera he saw he had a great view point on top of a hill and could see most of the city.

He gasped when he saw a huge monstrous… thing floating in the air entering the city. His hand beginning to shake he brought his camera to his eyes and began filming. _This is so amazing!_

XXXXXXXXXX

"Launch EVAs one and zero!" Misato shouted.

The second battle would now begin.


	8. It's nothing personal

Shinji grunted as his body was shoved back into his seat as he rocketed up the elevator towards the surface. This time when Unit 01 arrived it was inside one of the many hollow buildings that were spread all over Tokyo 3. As the building's side slid open he grabbed the rifle that was there and jumped out bringing to his shoulder and ready to fire. He saw Unit 00 pop up out of an intersection. Another false building opened and Rei snatched up a rifle as well. The timing could not have been better as the Angle came into sight. Its flat body towered over a nearby skyscraper, its segmented legs waved about as its large head swung between the two EVAs as though trying to decide which to deal with first.

"Open fire!" Misato shouted.

_Aim for the center and squeeze. _His targeting computer lit up as soon as he locked onto the Core. Both he and Rei opened up. Their bullets slammed into an active AT field and bounced off.

"That angel's AT field is significantly stronger than the last one's," Ritsuko noted.

Before Misato could ask about that the angel flew at one of the EVAs.

"Aaaahh!" Shinji shouted as it came at him.

Two whips made of solid energy lashed out of the angel. One cut his rifle clean in half while the other slammed into his chest and knocked him down. Inside the plug he cried in pain and grabbed at his chest, it felt like he'd just been whipped.

"Shinji activate your AT field!" Misato shouted.

As this was happening Unit 00 poured fire into the creature's side. Again the bullets struck the angel's AT field and were deflected away. When the ammo ran out Unit 00 tossed down the now useless rifle and ran towards the angel.

XXXXXXXXXX

"There are two of them!" Kensuke said happily. From his spot he had an almost perfect view of the battle and was recording it on his camera. "I'll download it soon as I get home!" He wondered if both Shinji and Rei were the ones out there. He suspected they were and would have to bring this up the next time they met. They _had _to tell him what it was like to actually pilot a real giant robot!

XXXXXXXXXX

The angel's whips hacked down but were defeated by Unit 01's AT field.

"Shinji!" Ritsuko called out. "Expand your AT field and have it press against the enemy's that will weaken it!"

Scrambling up to his feet Shinji did that, imagining a wall in front of him pushing out ahead of him towards the angel. As he did this he saw Unit 00 go flying into the side of it, tackling it and grabbing hold around its middle. Both the angel and Unit 00 stumbled into a block of buildings, smashing them as thought they were made of cardboard.

"Shinji!" Rei called out. "I will immobilize the enemy while you kill it!"

"Ri… right!" Reaching back he pulled out his prog knife.

The angel was wriggling about madly like a worm on a hook. Its spindly legs cracked down on Unit 00's armor. Its whips also lashed out at the EVA's back.

In her EVA Rei clamped down her teeth to keep from crying out at the sudden pain. Despite that she concentrated on holding the angel in place. Her EVA's arms held tight, no matter how desperately the angel struggled it could not pull itself free.

"This is your chance Shinji!" Ritsuko said. "Unit 00's AT field has significantly weakened the enemy's take advantage of it!"

"Yes!" He shouted. Having done it once before he knew exactly what he had to do now. Seeing Rei's EVA struggling only focused him totally on killing the enemy.

As he approached with his prog knife the angel's whips suddenly turned on him rather than on Unit 00. He felt them slap against his shoulders and back but didn't let that distract him. Taking the knife in both hands he stabbed at the giant red core. The knife's tip stopped momentarily as it hit the AT field. He imagined the wall in front of him expanding out past where the angel was.

The already weakened AT field suddenly failed and Unit 01's prog knife slammed through. It hit the core with a loud satisfying, 'crack.' With all his might Shinji slammed his knife in all the way to its hilt.

"Die!" He screamed.

And the angel did. It gave a last shudder and then simply stopped moving. It body slid lifelessly down to the ground.

"Power readings at zero," Ritsuko announced. "The angel has ceased all movement and appears to be dead."

"Any chance it might suddenly blow up?" Misato asked nervously.

Ritsuko shook her head. "Doesn't look like it, it's just dead. All readings show it to be completely inert."

"Looks like another win for the good guys," Misato said. She opened up her com link. "Great job you two! Any injuries? Are you both all right?"

"I'm fine," Shinji mumbled. His chest, shoulders, and back all stung like hell but he thought he was all right and didn't want to have to visit the hospital again. "Rei are you okay?"

"I'm okay Shinji," she told him. She too had some pain but didn't think it needed to be mentioned, that would only worry him. "I told you Shinji, as long as we fight together I am sure things will always be fine."

"Yeah," he said with relief. "I bet you're right."

"All right you two, save the sweet talk for later," Misato told them. "Your work's not done yet, we have to dispose of that angel's body without anyone seeing it. We're going to assemble some flat bed truck to transport it to a secret location. You two will stand guard over it and help load it up."

"Are we going to bring it into NERV headquarters?" Shinji asked.

"Don't be ridiculous," Misato said. "Even if that thing really is dead it would be way too danger out to bring down here. We'll find a place to study it somewhere else."

"Roger," Shinji replied.

"Shinji," Rei spoke. "So we are having dango tonight, right?"

"Yeah," he said with a laugh. "I'll make us dango, no problem."

XXXXXXXXXX

Kensuke watched for a couple of minutes as the two giant robots simply stood over the monster that now looked to be dead. "Well I guess that's it, oh man that was so cool!" He had managed to capture the whole battle on his camera. Up until now the only thing people had seen were a few jagged seconds of either the giant robot or the first monster rushing past. Now people would get to see a real live battle.

He was just about to turn off his camera when he felt a rough hand land on his shoulder.

Startled he turned around to see two very serious looking soldiers standing there. "Come with us." One of them said.

He immediately knew that arguing would be a mistake. He meekly nodded and did as they said. Likewise when one of them held out his hand for the camera he gave it over without complaint. He was sure not only that the images would not go out over the internet but that he was in trouble.

XXXXXXXXXX

Commander Ikari was just finishing a meeting with the UN budgetary committee when he received a called on his special line.

"This is Gendo speaking," he answered. He listened for a moment. "A classmate? I see, and is anyone aware of what he was doing?" He listened for another minute. "In that case you can carry out general order 12." He listened once more. "Yes I am sure, was there anything else? Goodbye then."

Fuyutsuki looked over at him. They had already heard of the battle and the victory that had been won. By all accounts a much more satisfying outcome than the first battle's. "There a problem with the angel?"

"No," Gendo replied without any real interest. "Just a minor inconvenience, nothing important."

XXXXXXXXXX

On her plate were a couple skewers with three big dumplings on each. Rei picked one up and tore into it. "Mmmm, yummy," she said before taking another bite.

Smiling Shinji began eating too. Getting to have dinner alone with her was a great way to wind down the day. (What they would do later would be even better.)

XXXXXXXXXX

When the door to his jail cell swung open Kensuke quickly got up to his feet. He hadn't been allowed to call home or anyone else. He'd been hustled off to an army base outside of town and shoved in here after he'd answered a few questions. He was feeling very nervous as the two soldiers came into his cell.

"So, uh, how much trouble am I in?"

One of the soldiers, a sergeant, looked at him a bit regretfully. "More than you could ever believe," he told him and pulled out the hand gun that was in his holster and pointed it right in Kensuke face. "Sorry kid, it's nothing personal."

"Wait! What are you…"

The sergeant pulled his trigger and carried out General Order 12 for dealing with civilians with classified information.


	9. Third battle

"What happened to Kensuke?" Shinji asked.

"Nobody knows," Hikari said miserably. "He was in the shelter with the rest of us and went to use the boys' room. He never came back."

_Could he have left the shelter and gotten killed in the battle like Toji? _Shinji didn't like that possibility, but leaving the shelter to take a look at what was going on sounded like something he would do. The battle had caused much less damage than the first one, but since no one had seen or heard from him since yesterday it seemed all too likely his other good friend was dead.

Rei reached over from her desk and put a hand on his arm. "Are you all right?" She asked quietly.

He gave a nod and a half hearted smile. "Yeah, I'm okay."

And he more or less was. Losing his other best friend hurt, but not the way losing Toji had. Maybe that was because he had already had to endure that first loss. Or maybe it was because he didn't _know _what had happened to Kensuke. For whatever reason though he was sad it didn't tear him up the same way Toji's loss had.

Still, his friend was gone. One more important part of the world he'd known had just disappeared.

He put his hand over Rei's and looked at her. Just so long as he had her he thought he could manage.

XXXXXXXXXX

A few days after the second battle Ritsuko was overseeing another simulation with Unit 01. She was pleased to note that Shinji's sync rate had climbed all the way back to 72.4, back to about where it had been before the first battle. Unit 02 was scheduled to be deployed here soon, with Shinji and Rei both performing so well and a new EVA about to join hem she felt their defense would be very strong.

A few minutes later a harsh and all too familiar siren reverberated through her control room and the rest of NERV headquarters.

"All personnel to your posts! Enemy detected! This is not a drill! All personnel to your posts!" Maya's voice rang through the intercom.

_Gendo isn't back yet, _Ritsuko thought. Misato would be in charge again.

Misato's image appeared on one of the monitors in front of her. "Ritsuko! Get Unit one prepped for immediate launch then meet me in Central Dogma."

"Understood," she replied and the image was gone. _Well here we go again. It would have been nice if they could have waited another week until Gendo was back and we had Unit02 here. _The enemy was being quite inconsiderate. She switched on her com link. "Shinji, we're under attack. We'll be moving your EVA to one of the launch pads."

"Roger that," on the screen Shinji flashed her a confident smile and gave her a thumbs up.

She was very pleased to see how he had adjusted to the stresses of combat.

XXXXXXXXXX

Up in Central Dogma Misato listened with half an ear to the launch procedures that were preparing the EVAs. Her focus was the image of a massive octahedron that was peacefully floating through the air no more than a hundred yards above the ground. It was made of some sort of material that reflected the scenery around it, as though it were a flying mirror.

She saw a flight of F-24s fire missiles at it to no effect. The Angel did not even bother to activate it's AT field, allowing the missiles to strike its sides and explode. It continued to fly over the countryside at its own leisurely pace, not a scratch on it.

"The enemy has been designated the fifth angel Ramiel," Maya stated.

"This one is a little bit different from the others," Misato noted. "Almost looks like something from a jewelry box. The ones before looked like monsters." She glanced over at the Chief Scientist. "What can you tell me about it?"

Ritsuko was frowning down at her initial readings. "Only that it seems to have very high internal power levels. I have no idea how that will effect it's AT field or what type of offensive weapons it might have."

On the giant overhead screen ground based rockets and shells fired at it. Again the angel ignored them and passed overhead without activating it's AT field.

"That's smart," Misato said in grudging admiration. "It must know only the EVAs are a threat to it, why show us its capabilities before it has to?"

"You think it might have some sort of nasty surprise?" Ritsuko asked.

"That's a real possibility," Misato said. "Whatever surprises it may have we'll have to deal with it."

XXXXXXXXXX

As Unit 01 was moved to its launch pad Shinji hit his com link. "Hey Rei, what do you want for dinner tonight?"

The girl gave the matter some serious consideration. "I feel like some udon," she said.

"I don't think we have any back at the apartment," Shinji said.

"Well unless the neighborhood grocer gets destroyed in the battle we can pick some up on the way home."

"Yeah, good point."

"Pardon me for interrupting your dinner plans," an amused Misato said. "But we still have this little matter of defeating the enemy angel to deal with."

"Uh, sorry Misato-san," Shinji said.

"I apologize Officer Misato." Rei said.

"Don't worry about it," Misato told them with a playful grin. "In fact why don't you invite me over too? It's been awhile since I've had some good homemade udon."

The two pilots were silent for a moment.

"Officer Misato," Rei finally spoke up. "You do realize we have no alcohol in our home don't you?"

All around her she heard the techs and even Ritsuko begin to snicker and laugh. Her drinking binges were already the stuff of legend at NERV headquarters.

"That's fine," Misato said with her face slightly red.

"In that case we'd be happy to have you come join us," Shinji said.

"Great, now all that we have to do is destroy that angel and we can all enjoy a nice dinner. All right, we'll send you up so that you'll be on either side of the enemy. Take advantage of your position to hit it from two sides at once."

She saw the fifth angel enter Tokyo 3 and take up a stationary position.

"Launch Units 00 and 01!"

The EVAs rocketed up towards the surface. Just as both units were about to exit an alert sounded.

"Powerful energy surge detected within the target!" Lieutenant Aoba Shigeru announced.

"What?!" Misato asked.

"Power level is spiking! Accelerating to its outer rim and converging!" Shigeru said.

Ritsuko saw the readings and instantly understood their meaning. "It's an energy weapon!"

As she said it both Units 00 and 01 reached the streets of the city.

"No! Get out of there!" Misato screamed.

"What?" Shinji asked.

It was too late. Before Shinji could even reach out to grab his rifle a section of the angel's surface glowed white hot. A beam of raw concentrated power fired from its side. It struck a building between it and Unit one and melted it like a candle in less than 0.3 seconds. It then struck Unit 01's armor, turning it orange and melting through it as well.

"Yaaaahhh!!" Shinji screamed and clutched at his chest, he felt as if her were being burned alive.

"Get them out of there now!" Misato screamed.

"Recovering both units!" Maya said.

The same elevators that had just brought them to the surface now pulled them back down. The hidden metal doors slid into place shutting the instant they were gone.

"How is he?" Misato asked fearfully. "Is he all right?"

"His pulse is dropping rapidly!" Ritsuko said. The plug containing the pilot had not been struck at all. But so long as the connection between pilot and EVA was active he felt whatever happened to it exactly as if it had happened to him. So far as his brain could tell Shinji had just had a hole burned into his chest.

A low pitched whine came from one of the monitors.

"He's going into cardiac arrest!" Ritsuko shouted. "Begin heart massage!"

Within the plug electric current ran through Shinji's suit making his unconscious form shake.

The whine cut off as the information on the pilot's condition changed. "We have a pulse again! It's weak though." Ritsuko said.

"What about the enemy?" Misato asked. "What's it doing?"

"Nothing," Shigeru stated. "It has gone silent and powered down."

"In that case I'm going to the cage to check on Shinji! Ritsuko I leave the rest to you."

"Right!" Ritsuko answered. "Have emergency medical personnel stand by for immediate surgery. Prepare to eject the plug!"

XXXXXXXXXX

As the commands to try and save Shinji went out Rei could do nothing but sit in her EVA and listen to them.

_Shinji, you have to be all right! _She balled her fists and clamped down her jaw. He couldn't die! That was impossible! She had made him a promise that she would never leave him.

Once Unit 00 was safely back in its cage it was meant to remain on standby in case the enemy made a move. The personnel in the cage were all surprised when Rei manually ejected her plug. They were all afraid she had been injured. As soon as the LCL was pumped out she opened her hatch and got out of the plug. She ignored their questions and the calls from Ritsuko as she hurried to the emergency room.

XXXXXXXXXX

Just outside the emergency room Rei was sitting on a small bench. She was still wearing her plug suit and reeked of LCL.

A frustrated and angry Misato was standing in front of her.

"Rei! I know you're worried about him, so am I damn it! But there's nothing you can do for him by just sitting here. I need you to return to Unit 00 and remain available for emergency deployment!"

Rei looked at her with a calm blank face. "Do you wish me to attack the enemy?"

"Not at the moment," Misato said. "After what just happened to Shinji we'll need to analyze the enemy's ability some more before deciding on a course of action. But if we can find some sort of weakness we may need to try and take advantage of it the moment it's discovered. That's why I need you to return to your EVA."

Rei looked her directly in the eye.

"No," she said. "If you mean for me to attack then I will do so Chief Operations Officer Misato. However, if your intention is solely that I sit and wait I prefer to do that here, as close to Shinji as possible."

"This is not a request Pilot Ayanami, if you do not immediately return to your EVA you will be disobeying a direct order." Misato didn't enjoy playing the heavy but she could do it when it was necessary.

"Understood Chief Operations Officer Misato."

Misato stared at her. "If the Commander were here would you give him the same answer?"

"Yes," she said tonelessly.

Misato closed her eyes and rubbed her temples in frustration. She couldn't really force her to pilot if she didn't want to. "Consider yourself under arrest then, charges are insubordination and willful refusal to follow lawful orders."

"Understood," Rei answered. She did not sound the least bit concerned or nervous.

"Since we will likely need you I won't have you put in the stockade for now, but you're not to leave the base."

"Understood."

"I guess you can remain here until he comes out of surgery, I'm going back to Central Dogma." As she turned to go Rei spoke.

"So you know Officer Misato I understand you are doing your duty and do not resent you for it."

Misato looked at the quiet girl and felt a pang of guilt. What she wanted to do was put her arms around her and comfort her. Personal wishes had to take a back seat to military necessity. They were currently at the mercy of the fifth angel, this was not the time for giving into sorrow. They needed to be strong and do what was needed, and that applied to Rei too.

"I'm not mad at you either Rei, but I can't let this slide."

Rei gave a small nod as Misato hurried off. She knew she would be punished but simply didn't care. Until she was needed to fight she would stay as close to Shinji as she could.


	10. I'll protect you

In Central Dogma Misato watched a flight of four F-24s approached the stationary angel. It was presently located directly above them; a drill had exited out of it and was slowly boring its way through 22 armored layers that protected the geofront from attack. At the rate it was going the fifth angel would be through in a little less than 10 hours. Having beaten Unit 01 and forced Unit 00 to withdraw it certainly didn't seem to be in much of a hurry.

"Energy build up!" Shigeru alerted.

"Order the fighters to abort!" Misato said quickly.

On the screen a section of the angel began to glow white hot.

"Too late," Ritsuko said clinically as she studied the readings.

A single beam of energy lashed out at the approaching fighters. They vanished as the beam touched each of them before dissipating. Four explosions marked there the fighters had been, no chutes were to be seen. Four brave pilots had just been sacrificed for the sake of acquiring a little more information about the enemy.

Misato stared at the screen and at the smoke and fire that was already beginning to fade. She'd called in the attack knowing damn well there was no hope it would succeed. "Please tell me we've learned something," she said quietly.

"It would seem the enemy has set up a defensive area around itself," Ritsuko began in her best analytical voice. "Anything perceived as a threat entering that area will immediately be attacked. Given its power readings when it fires I'd say both its energy beam and AT field are immensely strong."

"But how can we destroy it?" Maya asked nervously. "How can the EVAs even get close enough to attack it?"

"That will prove the real difficulty," Ritsuko acknowledged. "They're likely to be eliminated even before they can get close enough to effect it's AT field."

"Maybe we should run up a white flag?" Shigeru offered, only half joking.

"I'm not quite ready to surrender just yet," Misato said. "How are repairs to Unit 01 coming?"

"They'll be complete in under 3 hours," Ritsuko assured. "The primary, secondary, and tertiary armors were all ruined; fortunately the EVA was pulled out before its internal organs were damaged."

"Organs?" Misato asked.

"I meant systems," Ritsuko said without hesitation. "I must have been thinking about Shinji. It looks like he'll pull through. Even though he's still in surgery."

"It's a good thing since we'll need him and Unit 01." She didn't let any of her own worry permeate her voice. She sounded confident and sure of herself as usual. Inside she squirmed. She knew how patently unfair this was, asking a 14 year old to come straight out of surgery and go right back onto the battlefield. But there was no choice, she needed Unit 01 and there was no one else who could pilot it. _I'll make it up to him, _she promised herself. _Assuming of course we all survive this._

"Even if Shinji and Unit 01 are available how can we use them and at least have a chance?" Shigeru asked.

"Simple," Misato said with a grin. "If we can't get close we'll just have to destroy it from long range."

"None of our rifles will penetrate that AT field," Ritsuko warned.

"Actually I have an idea about that…"

XXXXXXXXXX

Commander Ikari and Fuyutsuki had been rushed back following the Angel's attack. Misato was reporting to him and telling him her plan.

"What did MAGI say?" Ikari asked.

"Super computer MAGI's answer was two for affirmative and one affirmative with certain conditions." Misato said.

"The computed possibility for success is only 8.7%." Fuyutsuki noted.

"That is still the highest percentage for any scenario we have come up with thus far," Misato said.

"There is no reason to reject it," Commander Ikari said dispassionately. "Carry on Officer Katsuragi; I will get you the necessary authorization."

"Thank you Commander."

XXXXXXXXXX

"You do know this is an absurd plan don't you?" Ritsuko asked.

"Absurd?" Misato replied in annoyance. "It's the best plan we can come up with and put into effect in less than 9 hours."

"You want to defeat the enemy's AT field without first weakening it. Do you have any idea how much power that will take?"

Misato grinned at her. "At least 180 million kilowatts."

Ritsuko's black eyebrows leapt up in surprise.

"MAGI told me."

"I should have known, but that's the problem and why the idea is absurd. Our EVA special positron rifle is still only a prototype in the developmental stage, it won't take that much power."

"I know," Misato told her. "That's why I'm going to 'borrow' a different one that will."

"Borrow?" Ritsuko questioned. "You mean…"

"Yep," she answered playfully. "I'm going to use the Strategic Self Defense Force Lab's prototype. The Commander is getting me special authorization to commandeer it from the Japanese government."

"Well, that does take care of the main problem," Ritsuko admitted. "But how are you going to access 180 million kilowatts?"

"Simple, we'll take it from all over Japan."

XXXXXXXXXX

The decision made every department swung into action and even the Japan's government agreed to compliantly follow NERV's lead. A nationwide black out would commence at 23:30 hours, technicians from NERV's section 3 hurried to assemble the prototype rifle while military and civilian engineers from all over the country were rushed in to set up the equipment necessary to collect and distribute such a colossal amount of electricity. Ritsuko and her department broke out a gigantic electromagnetically coated shield that Unit 00 could use to withstand the enemy's attack for 17 seconds.

With distance and line of sight requirements Mount Futagoyama was selected for the location of the attack and the time was set at midnight, 0:00 hours.

"At the rate the angel is going it will penetrate the last line of defense at 0:06 hours," Shigeru noted. "Cutting it kind of close aren't you?"

"It can't be helped," Misato said. "Nothing like this has ever even been attempted. The techs want every possible minute to set things up and make sure everything actually works." She let out a worried sigh. "Which means everything comes down to the pilots."

XXXXXXXXXX

Shinji opened his eyes to find himself staring up at a strange ceiling again.

"You're awake," a concerned voice said.

He turned his head a little and saw Rei sitting there at his bed side. Seeing her he immediately smiled and felt relieved. "Hey Rei, I didn't do so good this time did I?"

"You did well enough Shinji," she told his softly. Reaching out she took hold of his hand. "I wanted to get my violin but I wasn't allowed to go back to our apartment."

"That's fine," he said. "Just having you here is enough."

She stared at him and tried to understand the feelings that were surging through her. When he'd been in surgery all she'd felt was this emptiness inside her chest. All she could think about was how nothing would matter to her if he died. Now that he was awake again she was very, very happy, but at the same time she was still scared for him and she had a terrible sense of guilt that she had not been able to protect him. Logically she knew there had been nothing she could have done, the attack had been too swift for her to act. That knowledge did nothing at all to assuage her feelings.

_Human emotions are so confusing, _she thought.

"Shinji, the enemy is trying to break into the geofront and attack NERV headquarters. A massive counter attack is being set up and we'll have to deploy to fight."

"I… I see."

She felt his hand squeeze hers.

"Are you scared?"

"No, of… of course not."

"You're not a very good liar Shinji," Rei noted.

"Well it doesn't really matter does it? Scared ort not I'm going to have to go. But it'll be okay; as long as we fight together we'll both be fine, right?"

She nodded. "Yes, I am certain that is true. We are expected to be in the cage by 17:30, Units 00 and 01 are to deploy at 18:00, at 18:30 arrive at our temporary base at Mt. Futagoyama and await orders, the operation is expected to begin at 0:00."

He slowly nodded. She could feel his hand trembling within hers, she knew he was frightened, but he would not say anything in front of her. For her sake he would try and be strong.

"There's food if you want to eat."

"I'm not hungry," he said.

"All right," she stood up and came over to him. She was still in her plug suit and smelled strongly of LCL. She climbed up and into his hospital bed.

"Rei! What are you doing?" His eyes went nervously to the door. They both tried to keep their relationship secret. They did not have public displays of affection. The most they would ever do outside the apartment was hold hands.

"Is this not all right?" She whispered as she wrapped her arms around his chest and rested her head on him. "We have about an hour until we have to leave. Can we just be like this until then?"

"But what if a nurse or somebody should come in and see?"

"I don't care," she told him. "I want to be close to you right now, is that all right?"

She felt his arms slowly close around her.

"Yeah Rei, its fine." He told her quietly.

XXXXXXXXXX

By the time the two EVAs had deployed the highway leading to Futagoyama was filled bumper to bumper with power trucks. The positron rifle had already been assembled, but groups of technicians and engineers were still running about desperately setting the necessary equipment to contain and direct the power that would be coming.

Shinji and Rei were outside their EVAs as they waited. From the hilltop they could clearly see the Angel about five miles away. If it noticed all their frantic activity there was no sign. It had cleared the 17th armored defense zone and was still methodically drilling down towards the geofront and NERV headquarters.

Shinji was staring at the positron rifle. Its parts were wildly different in design and shape and hadn't quite 'fit' properly. Section 3 had made a few temporary modifications in order to put it together.

"Will that even fire?" Shinji asked dubiously.

"Who knows?" Misato answered with a happy smile. "It's never actually been tested before and we're not 100% sure it can handle the amount of power we'll be channeling through it. MAGI reports a 12.3% chance that it will overload and take out the whole site."

He looked at her horrified. "How can you say that and sound _happy?"_ He asked.

She shrugged. "When you don't have any choice there's no point in worrying about things like that. If this attack fails the angel will initiate Third Impact and mankind will be wiped out. Compared to that overloading the rifle doesn't seem like such a big deal does it?"

"I guess not," he said weakly.

"Anyway I just wanted to give you your assignments in the upcoming attack. Shinji."

"Yes?"

"You'll be the gunner; you've always been the more accurate one so we'll trust you with firing the weapon."

"Roger," he said dully. Once again he literally had the fate of the world riding with him.

"Rei, you and Unit 00 will act as his shield. Whatever happens you must protect him until he can destroy the angel."

"Understood," she answered.

"Everything depends on precision; the positron will be slightly affected by the earth's gravity and rotation. The targeting computer has already been adjusted to compensate. Rely on it and fire when it tells you it has the Core lined up. Everything depends on defeating the enemy with one shot!"

"Right," Shinji said. "But I've never even practiced with it."

"Just follow the text books and you should be fine." Misato assured him. "When the targeting computer shows you everything is aligned just pull the trigger."

"Yes," he answered woodenly.

"Because of the extreme heat generated after each shot the fuse will be burnt out. Replacing the fuse, cooling, and recharging will take some time."

"So if I miss…"

"Don't miss," she told him.

When Misato left them alone he stared at the ugly haphazard weapon. He then looked out at the angel as it just hovered there over the heart of Tokyo 3.

"I wonder if we're going to die today." He said in a hushed voice.

He felt Rei take his hand. He looked to see she was standing close to him and looking back with a very serious expression. "Don't be afraid, you won't die."

She suddenly got up on her toes and kissed him. Startled his face went red and he gasped, she had _never _done that in public before.

When the kiss ended she looked him in the eye and spoke with complete conviction. "You won't die Shinji, because I'm going to protect you."


	11. Bitter victory

At 23:30 hours the lights all across Japan began to go out. Only places with their own generators such as hospitals or military bases still had power. The country entered into momentary darkness in order to fight one more desperate battle.

XXXXXXXXXX

Shinji and Rei were sitting together on a platform high above the ground. They were in their plug suits and waiting to enter their EVAs. They sat close to one another, holding hands and looking out at the Angel. It had gone through 20 defense zones already, only two more remained.

As they watched most of the lights in Tokyo 3 went out. Only a series of high powered search lights remained active. These kept the Angel fully illuminated and in clear view.

"We'll have to go soon," Rei said.

"Yeah."

"Are you still scared?"

He turned his head away from the angel to look at her instead. "No, if you're protecting me there's no reason to be scared."

She thought he meant it. "Good."

With regret she slowly let go of his hand and got up to her feet. "I guess we need to get to our EVA plugs."

"I guess so," he said and got to his feet.

She looked at him and smiled. For a long time that had seemed unnatural to her. Now though it came easily whenever she was near him. "Shinji?"

"Yes?"

"I love you." She quickly left and ran off towards her plug.

As when she had climbed into his hospital bed or kissed him he was again startled. They had both said those words many times before where no one else could hear. Hearing them now they gained a deeper meaning. Shinji couldn't help but think they sounded a little like, 'goodbye.'"

"I love you too," he whispered though of course there was no one to hear.

XXXXXXXXXX

In a command trailer on sight Misato and the rest of her team watched as the clock ticked down to midnight. At last the screen read 0:00.

"Commence the operation!" Misato called out. "Shinji, we entrust to you all the power in Japan." _To say nothing of the fate of all mankind._ "Do your best!"

"Roger, I won't let you down Misato!"

"I know you won't," she answered. "Rei take up your defensive position, you must protect Unit 01 no matter what."

"Understood," she replied.

"Open the first connection," Misato ordered. All around her gauges began to move and a hum began to rise as the power of a whole country was routed past them.

"Voltage coming up to operational levels," Shigeru stated.

"All cooling systems at full power," Maya said. "Temperature is stable no problems."

_So far, _Misato thought and unconsciously put her hand over her father's cross. "Open the second switch."

The hum around them increased noticeably.

"Positron rifle charging, at 15%." Ritsuko stated.

"Mandatory condensers on line," Maya said. "Everything shows within tolerable limits."

As they waited for the power to build up the clock continued to run and showed 0:03. In three more minutes the last armored defense zone would be breached and NERV headquarters would be helpless.

"Open the third connection!" Misato ordered.

"Rifle charge at 50%," Ritsuko announced.

In his EVA Shinji breathed in and out slowly. He looked at the targeting computer and tried to relax. _Hit the target. Hit the target. Hit the target. _The through ran through his mind again and again as he tried to forget everything else.

"Rifle charge at 90%!" Ritsuko declared.

"Open final connection, release all safety locks, weapons free," Misato ordered.

"Weapons free, all safetys released." Maya said.

"Pull the bolt back," Shigeru ordered.

Unit one pushed back on a gigantic bolt just as if this cutting edge prototype weapon were an old fashioned Springfield rifle. A huge fuse larger than a tractor trailer slid into place like a bullet. Inside the plug a visor dropped down over Shinji's eyes and a pair of 'X's moved toward the Angel that was in his sight. "Here we go," he whispered only for himself.

"Charge at 98%... 99%..."

Out in the distance a section of the angel began to glow white hot.

"I have high energy readings on the enemy!" Shigeru shouted. "Enemy power levels spiking!"

"Charge at 100% ready to fire!" Ritusko cried.

"Shinji shoot!" Misato cried.

Shinji saw the tow 'X's cross and light up green. He squeezed his trigger finger just as a beam of energy race off the Angel.

The two beams followed the same trajectory, as they approached each other each was effected by the other and the beams danced about wildly. They went past no longer on a straight path but both of them looping around. Shinji's beam annihilated a block of buildings in Tokyo 3 while the enemy's crashed into the side of Mt. Futagoyama, causing the ground to shake but doing no real damage.

"That was a miss!" Shigeru cried out. "I repeat, a miss!"

"Reload and fire again!" Misato cried.

"Cooling systems at full," Maya called. "Temperature dropping to tolerable levels."

"Positron charge at 22%." Ritsuko called.

In his EVA Shinji calmly worked the bolt and slid out a smoking and blackened fuse putting in a new one he slammed into place and waited for the targeting system to come to life again._ Hit the target. Hit the target. Hit the target! _He thought with even greater urgency.

Everything was coming back up with painful slowness. As Misato looked on the clock read 0:06.

"Enemy has penetrated last armor barrier," Maya said. "The angel appears to be retracting its drill."

_It has a clean line of fire now, _Misato thought with sickening certainty. _As soon as it gets its drill out of the way it's going to annihilate NERV headquarters. _"How much longer?" Misato demanded.

"At least another 20 seconds," Shigeru stated.

A section of the angel glowed white hot.

"Enemy power level spiking! It's about to fire!" Shigeru said.

"Charge at only 78%."

A beam of white energy fired from the angel.

"Shinji!" Misato cried.

Shinji saw it coming and shut his eyes. He opened them a couple seconds later.

"Rei!"

Unit 00 was standing directly in front of him holding up a gigantic shield. Even as he watched Shinji could see the shield beginning to warp and melt.

"I need to shoot!" Shinji yelled.

"Charge at 85%," Ritsuko announced.

"Ten more seconds," Maya stated.

In her EVA Rei could feel her hands burning and her skin blistering under the extreme heat. The shield wouldn't last much longer but she was certain her EVA could survive at least another 8 to 10 seconds if necessary. She would protect Shinji with her life.

"Charge at 100%!"

Shinji saw the X's cross and squeezed the trigger. The positron ray fired just past Unit 00's right shoulder and it fired straight and true. It hit the angel dead center, overpowering it's AT field and burning clean through and out the other side. The angel's beam shut off as it slammed down into the city.

Above its now cracked and lifeless form a gigantic cross of energy rose, marking its demise.

XXXXXXXXXX

When the beam shut off Unit 00 tossed aside the now useless shield. Its own armor was badly melted and slagged; it slumped down to the mountainside.

The EVA deactivated and did not move any further. "Rei!" Shinji shouted. "Rei are you all right?!"

Closer than anyone else his EVA got to her and, carefully, removed Unit 00's back plate and released the Plug. He pulled the plug out and safely set it down on the ground before manually ejecting his own.

XXXXXXXXXX

Rei slowly came back to consciousness to the curses and pounding coming from her plug's entryway. As she watched it was pulled back with a loud grunt. She saw Shinji lean in, he was crying. She noticed that the gloves on his plug suit had burned off and the skin there was red and bloody.

"You burned your hands," she noted.

He didn't seem to hear her. He climbed in and got to her seat where she was still strapped in. "Are you all right? Are you okay?" He asked through his tears.

"I'm fine Shinji," she told him.

"Really? Are you really?"

"Yes," she assured him. Reaching up she wiped away his tears. "Please don't cry anymore."

Putting his arms around her he pressed his face to her shoulder. "I love you. I love you. I love you. I love you…"

He repeated it over and over again as she quietly rubbed the back of his head.

XXXXXXXXXX

_So we managed to survive one more time, _Misato thought. _Is that just dumb luck or is someone watching out for us? _

She received a sound only message from NERV headquarters. "Congratulations on your victory Chief Operations Officer Misato."

"Thank you Commander Ikari. How are things there at headquarters?"

"You succeeded in defeating the angel before we suffered any damage," he informed her. "What is the condition of the two pilots?"

"We've just confirmed both are well and have suffered only minor injuries," she said with relief. "Unit 00 appears to be badly damaged and may be undergoing repairs for some time."

"Understood," the Commander said. "Please place Pilot Ayanami under arrest and have her brought to the stockade."

"Wh… what?"

"Was my order unclear? She is to be arrested and returned here for incarceration. Charges are insubordination and willful refusal to obey lawful orders."

"Commander, given the circumstances I wish to withdraw those charges."

"This is not a civil matter Officer Misato, whether or not she is to be charged is not your decision, it is mine. Now have her arrested."

"Yes sir," she said. If she'd said what she'd really wanted to she'd have gone to the stockade as well.


	12. Certain conditions

The stockade was located in one of the lower levels below NERV's headquarters. Only one corridor led into the section where it was held, making it especially easy to limit access to it. The individual cells were all identical. They were 15 square feet with a bunk bed, a sink, a toilet, and a single overhead light bulb. There were no windows naturally (it being underground) and air was ventilated through an iron shaft only 6 inches wide. The heavy steel door had no handle or markings on it. It opened only when meals were brought in. Each time there were two armed guards, one with a tray of food and the other with an unslung rifle. The precautions they took suggested they thought her to be highly dangerous.

The light came on signaling it was 08:00. It would shut off again automatically at 20:00 hours. There was no switch to let her either turn the light on or off.

She had been in the cell for three days. The soldiers who had brought her here had seemed neither angry nor sympathetic. Like most soldiers doing their duty they had been professionally competent and gone about their work with a minimum of outward emotion.

She could appreciate that.

She was not asked any questions, she was not allowed a phone call, no one told her if there would be a trial or how long she could expect to remain here. She did not try to argue or plead her case. When the guards brought her food she ate it. When the light went out she closed her eyes and went to sleep. The rest of the time she just sat on her bed and stared at the wall.

Some time on the third day the door opened.

There were no soldiers this time.

This time Commander Ikari stood in the doorway looking at her with his stern face.

She looked at him in silence, she did not stand up, she did not greet him, she remained seated on her cot and simply looked at him.

"Do you know why you are here Rei?" He asked her in a low baritone.

"I am here because I disobeyed a direct order from Chief Operations Officer Misato," she said in a calm tranquil voice. She saw Commander Ikari's lips turn down in a severe frown.

"Why did you disobey Officer Misato's command? You have never been defiant before."

"I wanted to be near Shinji," she answered simply.

"You are a soldier Rei, one of a handful who are entrusted with guarding all mankind. Your personal wishes do not matter when set against the needs of all humanity. I thought you understood that."

"If Officer Misato had needed me for a mission I would have obeyed." Rei explained patiently. "What she wanted was for me to sit in my EVA and wait. I decided that I could do that just as well outside the operating room."

"That was not something for you to decide Rei. You are not allowed to simply pick and choose which orders you will follow." He gave her a very serious look. "I need to know I can count on you to do what you must. Especially when the time comes."

She looked back at him directly. "I will do what I know to be right, Commander Ikari."

Looking at her blank stare he again realized he had no idea what she was thinking. He could feel the tiniest bit of fear beginning to blossom inside his heart. Everything he had done with her had been meant to tie her to him. He had used his son to spark emotions in her in the hope that it would draw her even closer to him. Instead she was growing defiant, making decisions on her own and showing signs of a free will. That was dangerous. He had to be able to count on her to fulfill her destined role. Nothing could be allowed to threaten that.

"I hope you understand just how serious the charges against you are Rei. You may very well be court-martialed and sent to a military prison." He watched very carefully in the hopes of seeing fear in her.

She gave no reaction. She merely continued to watch him as she sat on her bed.

"I have had a great deal of difficulty preventing you from going up on charges. I may be able to, but only if I can demonstrate greater control of your behavior. Therefore, in order to keep you from facing trial and imprisonment you will have to come and live with me again. Except for when you are at school or training you will remain in my home away from disruptive influences."

"By disruptive influences do you mean Shinji?"

He gave a single curt nod. "I had really hoped he would grow up once he realized how much was at stake. But even with the whole world in danger he continues to act like a child. Even worse I can see his behavior is affecting you. My agreeing to let the both of you live together was a mistake, I see that now. You'll live with me and have as little to do with my son as possible. Do you understand Rei?"

"I understand Commander Ikari," she told him calmly. "I refuse."

The look of genuine surprise on Gendo's face was a rare sight. He covered it up quickly and restored his stoic mask.

"If you do not agree Rei I will not be able to help you."

"That is a lie." She said it without even the faintest trace of heat or anger. She was stating a fact, nothing more. "You are the Commander of NERV, had you wanted to protect me the incident would have been forgotten and I am sure you would have ordered Officer Misato to rescind her charges. I am sitting in this cell because that is what you wish."

Gendo stared at the little blue haired girl.

"You do not understand Rei, what I am doing is for your own good."

"Commander Ikari, may I ask you a question?"

"Certainly."

"Did you love your wife Yui?"

Both his eyebrows shot up as an even greater expression of surprise covered his face. "Yes, I love Yui. More than my own life more than anything in this world."

"You are using the present tense even though she has been dead for more than a decade." Rei noted dispassionately.

"That is because I still love her now every bit as much as I ever did. She is the one and only light in my life, the one and only source of joy. Everything I have done, _everything_, has been for her." He spoke with rare feeling.

"Then if you had a choice between hurting her or hurting yourself, which would you choose?"

"I would **never** deliberately hurt Yui," he told her sharply. "I confess that I failed her, but that was never the intention. I would much rather die myself than cause her any pain."

"Then why have you abandoned Shinji?" Rei asked, still calm, still unemotional. "If Yui could see what you have done to him would that not hurt her?"

Her words caught him off guard and appeared to make him angry. He glared at her with what she thought was hatred. He took a deep breath and composed himself again before answering. "You are still a child in certain ways Rei and do not understand the difficult choices adults are sometimes forced to make. It is often impossible to make everyone happy; you are forced to choose a path and make whatever sacrifices are necessary to reach your goal. Can you understand that?"

"Yes Commander Ikari, but I also understand what it means to love someone with your entire heart. I love Shinji and could never do anything that would bring him pain, no matter the consequences."

"You are being stubborn," he told her.

"I am being truthful," she said. "Being separated from Shinji would hurt me, but I know it would hurt him too, so I will not allow it."

"You are not in a position to dictate Rei," Gendo told her firmly. He needed to reestablish his position of importance in her eyes. He needed her to return to her obedient ways. "The second child and Unit 02 are already on their way here. Unit 00 will be out of action for some weeks regardless of your status. You can either agree to the terms I have laid out or you can remain alone in this cell. In either case you will not be allowed to live with Shinji any longer."

Rei slowly came to her feet and turned towards him squaring her shoulders. "I refuse to be separated from Shinji."

Gendo shook his head. "Then remain here." He took a step back. "When you are ready to see reason tell one of the guards and you will be brought to me."

The steel door slid back into place and she was again alone.

XXXXXXXXXX

The next morning Shinji was sitting in the passenger seat of Misato's car as they driving out of the city. He had a bouquet of white lilies in his lap and he was staring out the window sullenly.

"Shinji, I know how unfair all this must seem. But I beg you, _please _don't say or do anything stupid when you're with your father." Misato told him.

He glared at her. "How can he leave her in a prison cell?!" Shinji demanded. "And just because she wanted to stay near me while I was hurt? If she hadn't protected me during the battle none of us would even be alive now!"

Misato glanced from the road to his hands. They were swathed in bandages and he would have permanent scars. He had let his hands burn just so he could get to her and see that she was safe. Young or not it spoke of a genuine devotion that few people ever truly knew. The mental image of Kaji flickered through her mind but she vehemently squashed it.

"I know all that, and I wish I had never brought it up in the first place, but the fact is that no matter what her intent Rei _was _in the wrong and Commander Gendo is within his rights to hold her in the stockade." She tried to give him a reassuring smile. But I'm sure she won't be in any serious trouble, the truth is EVA pilots are too precious to be left in a prison cell. I'm certain she will be released soon. So I _beg _you don't do anything that will make it worse."

When Shinji had heard about Rei's arrest and the reason for it he had tried to get to his father to demand she be freed. Misato had only just been able to physically restrain him long enough to convince him that threatening the commander would not get Rei released and would only make things worse. He'd hated it, but he'd agreed with her. So for the last three days he'd gone to school and trained and quietly stewed.

And as fate would have it today he would get one of his rare chances to see his father.

"Also please try to think about your mother's spirit on this day, don't do anything that would make her sad." Misato told him quietly.

"That's not fair," Shinji said.

"Maybe not, but do consider it. This is the anniversary of her death after all."

XXXXXXXXXX

A few miles outside was a cemetery. Truly it was more of a memorial since there were no actual bodies buried there. There were hundreds on black metal columns planted in the ground beside simple plaques bearing the name and days of loved ones whole bodies could not be recovered for burial. About 90% of the plaques had an ending date in 2000; the year second impact took place. The plaque for Ikari Yui had one dating to 2005.

When Shinji arrived in front of his mother's memorial his father was already there. A set of flowers had been laid down before it. Shinji put his flowers down and stood beside his father in silence with his hands clasped. They did not greet each other or say anything at all. They both stood there in silence for about half an hour.

Gendo looked up to see a UN Albatross V-7 making its way towards him. The massive helicopter would take him to another meeting with representatives of the UN, they were squealing about the costs of repairing Unit 00.

"I have to go now Shinji, your mother would be happy that you came here today to remember her." He turned to leave.

"Father?"

Gendo stopped to look back at his son. Shinji had avoided looking at him this entire time, now though he was staring at him with eyes consumed with hate.

"What is it?" Gendo asked in a bland tone.

"When are you going to release Rei?"

"When she agrees to certain terms," he said.

"What terms?"

"I cannot discuss that with you."

"I want to see her," he said angrily.

"No," his father answered coldly and walked away towards the large helicopter.

"I hate you!" Shinji screamed at him. "I wish you would die!"

Gendo stopped and looked back at his son once more with his usual bored expression. "Grow up Shinji, stop being such a child." He then once again walked away.

Standing there seething Shinji stared at his back as he departed.


	13. Asuka

"By the way you keep staring out the window I guess things didn't go too well," Misato said.

Shinji continued to there in glum silence.

"Did you at least manage not to make things worse?"

"_I hate you!... I wish you would die!"_

"_Grow up Shinji, stop being such a child." _

"No, I didn't make things worse," he answered quietly. "What I said didn't affect my father at all."

"Well what exactly did you… aaaahhh!!"

Misato gave a sudden cry as what looked like a section of a warship crashed into the highway just in front of her car. She turned the wheel like a woman possessed while slamming on the brakes and somehow managed to swerve around the obstruction without crashing into it or flipping her car.

She heard the loud booms of artillery firing and the soft 'wooshes' of missiles being launched. Out in the bay a line of naval vessels were cutting loose with all the fire power they had. Approaching them was what could best be described as a set of geometric shapes bound together above a series of spindly black legs that were walking along the top of the sea.

"Damn it!" She slammed down on the gas and her car peeled off in a cloud or burning rubber and smoke.

As she did so her cell phone rang.

"This is Misato!" She answered with a snap.

"Officer Misato!" Shigeru said. "We've just had an alert about an incoming Angel."

"Thanks for the info! I never would have guessed!"

Out in the bay six crosses of energy rose out of the water lifting the ships out of the ocean and tearing them apart as though they were toys.

"I have the third child with me and am on route." The nearest entrance to the geofront was about six miles away. She could get him there in minutes assuming the Angel didn't notice them.

"Unit two has already been dispatched," Shigeru told her.

"What?" _She's already here?_

XXXXXXXXXX

Up above a massive cargo plane was flying with a squad of F-24s for escort.

"Once your Unit is activated internal battery will only provide 5 minutes of power," the flight commander spoke through the com link. "Are you ready for release pilot?"

"JA!!" The red haired girl shouted in her native german. _Now I finally get to show everyone just what I can do!_

The plane's bomb bay doors opened. The clamps and cables holding Unit 02 in place released and the gigantic red EVA was dropped and sent plummeting down through the sky.

"Yeah!!" The girl shouted in pure joy and switched on her EVA's internal power system. Within her plug a timer lit up at 5:00 and began to tick down the time her Unit would be active and able to fight.

The Angel stopped out in the bay.

Out of its weird body black lines shot out trying to spear the falling EVA. Unit 02 saw them coming and danced about avoiding them as it continued to fall. As it continued to drop a giant canister fell within reach. Popping open a weapon that looked like a crossbow was revealed. Grabbing it with both hands Unit 02 took a couple seconds to aim before sending a series of train sized quarrels raining down.

Four of them struck the angel's body and the various shapes broke apart and it looked as though it was destroyed.

"Wow!" Shinji said. His worries were momentarily forgotten as he got to watch and EVA Angel battle as nothing but a spectator for once. "That pilot is awesome! He's already killed it!"

"No," Misato said with grim certainty. "There's no way it could be that easy." She continued driving as fast as she could.

And sure enough the various pieces reassembled in mid air. This time black balls were fired from its body. When they neared the red EVA they exploded, lighting up the AT field. Unit 02 opened up with its crossbow. Rather than hitting the angel this time they too struck the enemy's AT field and fell harmlessly into the ocean.

Asuka directed her freefall so that she would crash right on top of the enemy. Grinning like a madwoman she kept firing her weapon until the ammunition was used up and then threw it aside. Just as she was about to hit her enemy she performed a back flip with a gymnast's grace so that she was coming down feet first towards it. With a thought she extended a metal spike out of her EVA's heel. With the full force of her Unit's fall it smashed into the AT field lighting it up and then tearing through it. Ripping through the Angel's defenses she crashed right on top of it, causing it to wobble on its spindly legs.

As it tried to shake the EVA off Asuka smashed into the sphere that was the largest of the disparate shapes. Her fists shredded the outer black skin to reveal the angel's core.

"Sterben sie und brennen sie in der Hölle!" (Die and burn in hell!) She shouted as she crushed the core in her Unit's hands.

The Angel's body fell into pieces and crashed into the sea. It was no feint this time, the Angel was dead, the danger passed.

Still speeding away Shinji looked out through the back window as the red EVA waded out of the ocean and onto dry land. "Amazing," he said in awe. "I never thought anyone could take out an Angel so fast! That guy must be one hell of a pilot."

"Yes she is," Misato said. _Great job Asuka, I'm glad to have you here. _"She'll be your new teammate from now on. Hopefully you'll get along well."

He nodded. "I'm sure me and Rei will work well with her."

_I just hope Rei gets the chance to work with her. _Misato thought but did not say.

XXXXXXXXXX

Half an hour later Shinji was down in the cage where the new Unit was being stored. Whereas Unit 00 was orange and his Unit was mostly purple with some green Unit 02 was all fire engine red. When he commented on that to Misato he heard a loud laugh from a red haired girl still dressed in her red plug suit.

"It was supposed to be yellow but I told them there was no way I would pilot something that color." The girl walked straight up to him with her chin held high and a confident smirk on her face.

"Shinji-kun this is Asuka Langley Soryu, ace EVA pilot from NERV's European branch."

The only way the UN had been able to assemble the necessary resources to create multiple EVAs and form NERV had been to agree to create multiple branches of the organization based and dominated by the various world powers and to allow each of them to build EVAs. Unit 02 had been built in Germany under the supervision of the European Union. EVA 03 was being built in China, Unit 04 in America, and Unit 05 in Russia.

Nodding politely Shinji followed the western tradition of holding out his hand. "I'm Ikari Shinji, pleased to meet you Asuka-san. I hope we can work well together."

Ignoring his outstretched hand Asuka walked right up to him and peered in close as though he were some bizarre specimen at a zoo. "So you're the third child? I've heard a lot about you. I was expecting you to be better looking and not so much of a wimp."

"Excuse me?" He said with a frown.

Ignoring him she turned to Misato. "Misato-san, are all Japanese really so weak and accommodating?"

"Are all Germans so rude and insulting?" Shinji asked.

"What was that?!" The girl demanded angrily and looked back at him.

Shinji stood his ground and glared back at her.

_So much for good first impressions. _Misato stepped between them. "Asuka it's good to see you again. Before you make disparaging comments about the Japanese people please remember that _I'm _Japanese as is the Commander and pretty much everyone you'll be working with."

The girl at least had the good grace to look a little embarrassed. "Sorry," she mumbled.

"Anyway, please try to get along with Shinji as the two of you will be teammates from this point on."

"What are you talking about?" Asuka asked in surprise. "Now that I'm here you can leave everything to me. You can keep him around as a backup if you want but I'll take care of all the Angels from here on out."

"Well that's very generous of you Asuka," Misato said in a dry tone. "But since the fate of all mankind is involved you might need some help with that."

"If she wants to fight the Angels alone I don't mind," Shinji said. "I'd be just as happy if Rei and I never had to face them again."

Asuka gawked at him and a look of disgust filled her features. "What kind of man are you? Don't you even care about who the number one pilot is? I'm here to take your spot!" She jerked a thumb to her chest. "Don't you plan to fight to be number one?"

"I don't care about that," Shinji said. "Rei and I are only doing this because we have to. If you can do it instead that's fine with us."

If anything that only made Asuka more angry. She wanted to _prove _she was the best; the title wouldn't be worth having if it was given to her by default.

Misato also looked unhappy with Shinji, though for a different reason. "Don't start thinking that your part in all this is done or that Asuka will be the only one fighting from here on out." She sent the girl a sharp look. "We're going to need _all _our pilots and EVAs to defeat the enemy and save mankind."

"Speaking of which, where's the first child?" Asuka looked around curiously. "There some reason she didn't come to meet me too?"

"It's… complicated," Misato said. "I'll explain to you during the party."

"What party?" Asuka asked.

"Why your welcome home party of course," Misato said with a grin. "You'll be living with me, maybe after we get you unpacked we can share a nice hot bath and get reacquainted."

"That sounds like a wonderful idea," a male voice said from behind her. "Any chance I could join you?"

Misato stiffened and felt ice run along her spine. She slowly turned around to see a good looking Japanese man around her age standing there grinning at her. "Kaji! What the hell are you doing here?! You're supposed to be working at the European branch!"

"I've been reassigned," he told her with an easy laugh. "So how about I come to this little party you mentioned?"

"Sorry," she said in a frosty voice. "It's limited to people I like." She grabbed a confused looking Asuka by the shoulders and led her quickly away.

An equally confused looking Shinji was left behind with an amused Kaji. "I've missed you!" He called out after her.

He saw her back stiffen and she got Asuka to the elevator even faster.

XXXXXXXXXX

The staff sergeant in charge of the cell block looked pale and nervous. He and the four soldiers on duty with him were gathered outside the open cell.

Inside hung the lifeless body of Ayanami Rei. She had taken her blanket and hung herself from the ventilation shaft.

Commander Ikari stood there looking on emotionlessly. "Have you told anyone about this? Anyone at all other than myself?"

"No sir!" The sergeant answered.

The Commander gave a weary nod. "Remove the body and see it is disposed of, then report to section nine for debriefing. You are not to tell anyone about this matter."

"Yes sir!" The sergeant and his men all looked unhappy but not frightened. One of the EVA pilot's dying while in custody would undoubtedly require a huge investigation and each of them knew they would be interrogated fully about everything that had happened since her arrival. They weren't too worried since they all knew they had followed all the correct procedures and done everything expected of them. No one had ordered Pilot Ayanami put on a suicide watch.

None of the five men had any inkling they would be murdered and their deaths covered up.

XXXXXXXXXX

Commander Ikari took the special elevator that led down to the lowest section of the geofront. This hidden area was known as 'Terminal Dogma' and was a closely guarded secret from even the highest levels of NERV and the UN. A grand total of only nine people knew what lay inside of it. The five members of Seele's ruling committee, Ritsuko, Fuyutsuki, himself, and Rei.

He used his special ID, submitted to a retina scan, and entered a password that was changed daily. He entered the secret entrance and passed through a long corridor before exiting out into a massive underground cavern.

Towering over him was the crucified form of the Angel known as Lilith, the second angel. Both wrists were nailed into place while the Spear of Longinus pinned its chest to the huge cross of iron. From its shorn legs a steady stream of LCL dripped out. For fifteen years now the Angel had bled LCL, forming a massive underground lake of the stuff.

Gendo halted for a moment to simply stare up at it. Lilith was not dead, merely comatose. Even if the spear and spikes were removed the Angel would remain inert.

It didn't have a soul at the moment.

He finally walked past and towards a large self contained tank of LCL. Floating within it were fifteen naked bodies. The heads all turned to follow his movement as he walked past. This was just a sort of reflex reaction, they too lacked any soul, they were mindless containers.

He walked over to a small cylindrical tank that had a single body floating inside. Her eyes looked at him with understanding and recognition.

"Hello Commander Ikari." Though he could not hear the words he recognized them from the movement of her lips.

"Hello Rei." He answered.


	14. I am not your doll

Gendo simply stood there as Rei kicked her feet and swam up to the top of the tank and opened its lid. She climbed out dripping LCL and dropped to the floor in front of him. She made no effort to cover herself, despite all her many years living among people she had never developed a human sense of modesty when it came to exposing her body.

In a number of other ways though she had become very human indeed.

That was what worried him. "Why did you kill yourself Rei?"

"I was tired of being in my cell," she answered simply.

Gendo knew that she was the same Rei who had been imprisoned. The body was new, but the soul which animated it was the same. She had 'died' once before. Seven years ago she had been murdered by an irate Akagi Naoko (Ritsuko's mother) who had then committed suicide. Immediately after one of the clones had revived with all of Rei's memories up to and including her death.

"Do you realize because of your actions I will have to terminate the soldiers who were aware of your suicide?" Gendo asked her.

"Why would I care about that?" She asked him with that eerie calm that calm to her so naturally. "If their lives had mattered you could have transferred them somewhere far away and made sure they never learned I was still alive. If you have killed them it was a matter of convenience for you."

He gave the girl an unhappy look. It was not an answer he'd expected or wanted. "What did you think your death would accomplish? For you real death is not an option, not while a body waits to be inhabited. You aren't really human."

"No, I am not really human," she said with a trace of sadness. She looked at him with curiosity. "Tell me Commander Ikari, what am I?"

"You are the hope for all mankind," he answered without a second's hesitation. "You are humanity's only salvation."

"Is that _really _what I am to you Commander Ikari?" She asked him. "Or am I only the means for reuniting you with your wife?"

"You are both," he told her calmly. "You will grant me my greatest desire and also save all humanity. The Human Instrumentality Project will put a final end to want and suffering, to pain and fear and even death itself. Humanity will achieve its final form."

She stared at him.

"Liar."

Though her face remained calm and her voice neutral he could see hatred in her eyes. It was the same look that had been in Shinji's.

"To truly be with your wife is your only desire, and that cannot be achieved through instrumentality. You yearn to be reunited with Yui as she was and to love her as a man loves a woman, as a husband loves his wife. You have no intention of sacrificing your individuality and merging with all humanity. That was never your goal. What you want is to become god and to rule over a world where you can be together with your wife forever."

He was caught completely off guard by her accusation.

Mainly because it was true. He fully intended to bring about Third Impact, but that was as far as his plans and Seele's matched. He would defeat the Angels who guarded the Tree of Life and sought to become the sole sentient life forms on Earth. But once the path to the Tree was open he intended to betray Seele and initiate Third Impact himself using Adam and Rei to merge his consciousness with Lilith and become a living god. He would bring back his beloved Yui and create a new world that they could rule over together.

The only person he had ever shared his endgame with was Fuyutsuki, who had also loved Yui in his own way. _How could she know what I planned? _The fear inside his heart began to blossom. _Did she always know?_

"Do not be ridiculous Rei," he told her trying his best to regain control of the situation. "Everything I have done up until now has been for the benefit of all mankind. Everything I have done for you has always been done with your best interest in mind. I love you just as though you were my own daughter Rei."

Her red eyes looked at him and were only burning hotter.

"More lies," she said in her empty, unfeeling voice. "You feel nothing at all for me or Shinji or human kind. The only one you love is Yui. Even Naoko and Ritsuko meant nothing, though they both loved you and shared your bed. You never felt anything for them; you just used them, the same way you meant to use me."

She took a step towards him.

Without thinking Gendo took a hasty step back. Instinctively his right hand dropped to his side reaching for the gun he kept there. Looking at her now he was afraid.

"I did what I had to," he said. With deliberate effort he did not take out his gun and stopped moving back. He couldn't show fear. If she saw that he was afraid of her he would lose all control over her. "I was forced to make hard choices, with Naoko and others, but it was always for the greater good."

"Why do you keep lying?" She asked him. "Is it because you still think I will believe you or because after all this time you've forgotten how to tell the truth? Do you know I have never lied to you Commander Ikari? Not even once. Do you know that I loved you once? Even though I knew from the beginning that you were only using me I still loved you. I wanted to make you happy. I never cared what your reasons were; I would have done anything you asked of me."

"Rei…"

"But then I met Shinji, and I discovered what it was like to love someone who returned that feeling. I found out how wonderful human love could be, how it could make you whole, how it could make you feel complete. It was then I _truly _understood how you must have felt with Yui, and why you could never let go of her even after death."

"I am glad that you understand Rei," he told her. "In that case will you help me as you did before?"

"No," she said. "Because you betrayed me."

All at once he felt hands grabbing his arms and legs. Looking about wildly he saw the clones pulling him down to the floor. As he'd been talking to the true Rei they had silently left their tanks and approached him unnoticed. Individually he was far larger and stronger than any of them. Working together though the fifteen of them had no trouble pulling him down and pinning him to the floor.

"Rei! What is the meaning of this?! Release me at once!"

"I do not care if you want to use me to become a god and turn on your own race," she told him. "But I cannot forgive your betrayal."

"What betrayal?" he demanded as he struggled impotently to shake off the clones that held him down.

"I love Shinji just as you love Yui," she told him calmly. "Yet you would take me away from him just to try and better control me. You cannot bear to be parted from Yui and I cannot bear to lose Shinji." Reaching down she calmly removed his gun from its holster. "I would do anything to be with him."

With a practiced ease she stood over him and pointed the gun at his head, aiming for the area between the eyes.

As Ikari Gendo looked up at her his eyes betrayed him. He thought he saw Yui standing there with hatred looking down at him.

"Yui please," he whispered to her. "It was all for you."

"Commander Ikari," Rei / Yui said. "I am not your doll."

Without hesitation she pulled the trigger six times until the clip was empty.


	15. That day

Fuyutsuki stood over the body of his former student, his face had been almost totally obliterated. The man who had won Yui's love and then destroyed her. The man who had dragged him into this dark world of secrets and hidden schemes. He could not claim to have ever actually liked Gendo, though in a sad way he'd been the closest thing the man had had to a friend. He had respected him however and had agreed to help him fulfill his mad plan. Not for his sake or mankind's.

But for Yui.

"Betrayed and killed by one of the people he tried to control, somehow it seems a fitting end." He looked over at Gendo's killer. "Why did you do it?"

"I did it to be with Shinji," she replied. She was now dressed in a school uniform and appeared completely unconcerned. "I will leave everything to you Lieutenant Commander Fuyutsuki. I am going home."

"Very well," he said and watched as she left. She was far from the first member of NERV to walk away unscathed from cold blooded murder. Given who she was (the first child and an EVA pilot) and more importantly _what _she was there was no other choice.

Staring at the corpse the old teacher lifted it into his arms with a grunt. He would carry it over to the lake of LCL and simply toss it in. Perhaps he would say goodbye and speak a last prayer for him. Though given all of Ikari Gendo's many crimes he doubted it would do much good.

XXXXXXXXXX

Shinji was sitting lifelessly on the couch staring at the TV when the door to the apartment opened.

"I'm home." Rei announced as if she had just come back from the corner store and not from a prison cell.

"Rei!" He jumped to his feet and ran over to hug her. "Rei! What happened? Why did my father let you out? Are you out for good? What happened?"

While being held close in Shinji's arms she carefully kicked off her shoes before answering. "Commander Ikari gave no reasons, but I believe there will be no more issues with my being incarcerated." All that was technically true. "Can we kiss now? I have missed being with you and would like you to kiss me."

"I missed you too Rei, I'm so glad you're free!"

He kissed her and felt her returning it.

For Rei his touch and his love reduced everything else to unimportance. For this feeling she would make any sacrifice without hesitation.

"I love you Rei."

When he said those words she knew they were the truth.

"I love you too Shinji, to the end of the world and beyond."

XXXXXXXXXX

"Yaaaaahh!!" Asuka screamed from inside the bathroom. The bathroom door slammed open and a naked Asuka stood there, shock and terror painted on her face.

Misato looked up from the table at her questioningly with a beer in her hand. "Is something wrong Asuka?"

"Misato-san! There's a… a…"

As she was sputtering trying to explain a three foot tall penguin waddled out past her, obviously ignoring the commotion. As the EVA pilot stared the strange creature walked over to a door hatch and extended a claw from one of its wings. The door opened revealing a refrigerated room that included a miniature chair and TV.

"Oh him?" Misato said nonchalantly. "He's another boarder, a special hot springs penguin, his name is Penpen."

"Penpen?" Asuka said weakly.

The penguin sent her a disinterested glance before shutting the door to his little compartment.

Asuka remained there staring blankly at the now closed door.

"Are you still planning to take a bath?" Misato asked pleasantly.

Asuka returned to her senses and glared at her superior and roommate. "Why the hell didn't you tell me about him before?"

"Slipped my mind," she said.

With a growl she slammed the bathroom door shut again.

Misato had a good laugh as she finished off her beer.

XXXXXXXXXX

"Lieutenant Commander! What is the meaning of this?" Ritsuko was waving about a piece of paper angrily.

Fuyutsuki didn't need to actually see the paper to know what it was, or to guess the reason for Ritsuko's rare display of emotion. "Commander Ikari has been transferred to a new post and until his return I will be the acting Commander for NERV."

"Transferred where?" Ritsuko demanded. "For how long? Why wasn't I informed of something so important?"

"The transfer wasn't planned," he told her. "It came rather suddenly due to an unexpected circumstance." _Rei emptying his pistol into his face._

"What could possibly be more important than overseeing NERV headquarters?" Ritsuko asked him suspiciously. "What exactly was this emergency? Where is he? When will he come back?"

"I'm not at liberty to answer any of those questions," he told her. Before she could argue further he leaned in and spoke in a low tone. "He was called away by his superiors, that's all I can tell you. Don't ask too many questions or bad things could happen."

Her mouth turned down and she appeared even more worried than ever. Despite all the meetings he was forced to have with UN officials about funding she didn't consider those people to be his, 'superiors.' The only ones who could accurately fill that role were the ruling committee members of Seele. If _they _had suddenly called him away he might be in real danger.

"I know you are worried about him, but please be patient and have faith things will work out."

"I… I don't suppose there's anything else I can really do, is there?" Ritsuko asked him.

"For now that would be the best course of action," Fuyutsuki agreed.

Her head cast down Ritsuko departed.

Fuyutsuki looked at her with sympathy; loving Gendo only ever brought pain and death. He hoped that she would escape that fate.

XXXXXXXXXX

Fuyutsuki sat in a darkened room surrounded by five monoliths with the words, 'Sound Only' on them. He had just given Seele's ruling committee a concise report on the late Commander's demise. There was little distress at Gendo's sudden end and absolutely no sympathy. As far as he could tell from their voices their mood was mostly one of relief.

"Fool!" One of them crowed. "He got careless and paid the price for it!"

"If he was careless in one area he would have been so in others as well," another voice agreed.

"Perhaps it was just as well this happened now," a voice Fuyutsuki recognized as Keel Lorenz's. "We had concerns with what his true intentions were."

_As well you might, _Fuyutsuki thought. _He intended to betray you when the time came._

"You have our full confidence and support Commander Fuyutsuki," a voice said.

"We entrust you with carrying out the battles against the Angels and assuring the Human Instrumentality Project is carried out as planned." Another person told him.

"We have faith that you will not fail us," said another.

One by one four of the monoliths vanished, leaving only Keel's.

"I will give you the same warning I gave to your predecessor after the Angels' returned," his rough voice spoke. "The Human Instrumentality Project is all that truly counts. The end time is coming and we cannot afford to fall behind. You must have the project ready by the time Tabris arrives. If you fail I will destroy you utterly."

"Yes I understand," Fuyutsuki answered without resentment. Given what was at stake he could not have expected anything else.

"We already know the outcome," Keel continued. "The prophesies within the Dead Sea Scrolls reveal we will succeed. All that is left to be decided is whether or not you will fulfill your role in that glorious achievement. Carry out your orders competently and you will live forever along with us and all humanity. Fail and only death awaits. Do not disappoint us."

Without waiting for a reply the monolith vanished.

The meeting now over the new Commander of NERV brought the lights up. From beneath the table he took out a small briefcase and popped it open. Kaji had delivered it to Gendo only hours before. Within was what looked like a fossil of some creature waiting to be born.

In fact this tiny thing was the first Angel, Adam, reduced to its embryonic form as a result of the Second Impact. He took the first Angel and held it in his hand. This was the key to Third Impact and humanity's final fate. _One _of them at any rate.

It could not be used yet, not so long as the other Angels still existed. So long as they lived the Tree of Life remained inaccessible to them. But if the prophesies were true then once Tabris, the 12th and final angel, was defeated the time _would_ come.

_What do I do then? _He wondered. Would he follow Seele's plan and merge all humans into a single entity without form or substance? Would he follow Gendo's path and become a living god? Or might he do something else entirely? _Will I even get the chance? Just what are those old men scheming? _Unlike Gendo he had never done anything to make Seele suspect his loyalty. That did not mean that they trusted him or that they did not have their own hidden plans in place for that day.

Fuyutsuki carefully put the fossilized Angel back in its case and snapped it shut. He didn't honestly know yet what he would do when that day came. (Assuming he was in any position to do anything.)

He still had time though.

For now he would devote all his energy to defeating the remaining Angels.

XXXXXXXXXX

**Author Notes: **Before any of you write in to correct me in **my **version of this story there will be only twelve angels.


	16. Hiatus

Hello everyone. This is to inform all my readers that I am placing all my stories on hiatus until at **least** the end of the year. I am very sorry but I have no real choice. I am a senior accounting student at the University of South Florida and am gearing up for my finals and trying to graduate with my BA. After which I have lots of other things I need to deal with, not least of which is trying to find a good job in this economy.

I absolutely **love** writing. I love reading your reviews and messages, except when they smell of napalm of course. And while I write for myself please be assured I have always been amazed and honored to see so many people putting my stories on their favorites and alert lists. It has been a very great pleasure writing all these stories, and it has made me extremely happy to know how many of you honestly enjoyed what I wrote.

I thank you all.

But it's because I love writing so much that I have to stop for awhile. My writing has become my addiction and my keyboard my escape from the world's problems. So I need to walk away for awhile and put all my energies and time into real life problems.

I still plan on coming back as I love writing too much to ever stop for good and I don't want to leave my stories unfinished. This is not goodbye, just so long for now.

LOTLOF


	17. Asuka strikes! Sort of

**Author's Note: **To all my readers, I will once again be updating my stories. However from this point on I expect my updates will come at a slower rate as I have less free time these days. While I really do appreciate all of you who have taken the time to read my work I ask that people not leave reviews or send me PMs simply to ask me to update a particular story. I'll remind everyone that this is a hobby for me and not my profession; I don't have deadlines for anything I post here. I do promise to try and finish everything I have written, I just don't know how long that will take.

XXX

That night, as he lay beside Rei, Shinji had an odd dream.

XXX

Shinji slowly opened his eyes to look up into a gorgeous clear blue sky. The sun was shining down through the leaves of a large tree.

"Did you have a nice nap dear?" A woman's voice spoke.

It was Rei… only it wasn't. It was her face, her eyes, her voice, but it wasn't the Rei he knew. Her face was that of an adult woman's not a fourteen year old's. Her body was an adult's too. She had on a light blue sundress and was running a hand through his hair. Her hair was longer now, going down well past her shoulders. Her lips were set in the familiar gentle smile that she only ever had for him. He realized he was lying in the grass with his head resting on her lap. Nearby he noted an empty picnic basket. In the background there were birds tweeting and the low steady chirping of cicadas.

He noticed his hands. They were much bigger than they should have been. The burn marks on his palms were no longer red and tender. They were faded and healed.

"Is something wrong Shinji-kun?" Rei had a slightly puzzled look on her face.

He sat up and faced her. She looked even more beautiful now than she did as a teen. The casual dress looked good on her, it looked natural and fitting. The real Rei didn't own any sundresses; she had a surprisingly limited wardrobe for a girl.

"Where is this?" He asked her.

She gave him a surprised look. "This is our home Shinji-kun, the black moon."

"Black moon?"

He could see the confusion on her face. He was sure it was a reflection of his own. Before either of them could speak he was distracted by the sound of children laughing.

Out in the sunlight a little boy and girl were playing together. They both looked to be around five or so. The boy had black hair and blue eyes, while the girl had blue hair and red eyes.

"Who are they?" He asked.

"Our children," Rei answered calmly.

"Children?" He gasped.

She simply nodded.

He was starting to panic but she reached out and put a hand on his cheek, calming him immediately. "Have you forgotten?" She asked curiously. She laughed at him softly. "I didn't think gods could forget."

"This is a seriously weird dream," he said to her.

Sudden comprehension struck her face. "Ah, I see now. Yes, I suppose this is a dream, from a certain perspective. Is it a good dream?"

He slowly nodded. "Any dream that has you in it is always good," he told her.

That made her happy and she placed a light kiss on his lips. "Go back to sleep Shinji-kun and I am sure you will awake in your proper place."

Going to sleep inside a dream struck him as weird but he put his head back down on her lap and closed his eyes.

"Sleep Shinji-kun, this place will wait for you," she told him softly as he drifted off.

XXX

When he woke up again Rei was standing over him already dressed in her school uniform. "You need to get up now Shinji."

Yawning he sat up in bed. "I had a really weird dream," he told her. "By the way Rei, have you ever thought of buying a sundress?"

"A sundress?" She asked in surprise.

"I think you would look really good in a light blue one."

XXX

When the school year had begun their homeroom had had every seat filled. Tokyo 3 was Japan's new capitol and a symbol of hope and humanity's recovery from the ravages of Second Impact. The city population had mushroomed over the last few years as more and more people had come here in hopes of a better future. Shinji and Rei had gotten used to constantly seeing new faces at school.

Now Tokyo 3 was a battleground. Despite the best efforts of NERV and the Japanese government the great modern city was slowly being destroyed. Even with round the clock repairs and reconstruction whole blocks remained nothing but rubble. Some of the great skyscrapers stood torn in half or with massive chunks ripped out. Piece by piece the city was being laid to waste.

In their homeroom more than half the seats were empty. There was talk of combining this class with another one. It hadn't happened yet but might before too much longer. Every week more families evacuated, and a few more students were forced to leave.

It was not surprising that in such an atmosphere most of the students were excited at the chance to welcome a new arrival. The boys were particularly hyped up when they saw their new classmate was an exotic red headed beauty. Standing up in front of them she scrawled out her name in big flamboyant letters on the blackboard. She then turned around to face them with a big confident smile.

"My name is Asuka Langley Soryu and I am very happy to be joining all of you! I hope we can all become really good friends. Please take good care of me!"

Just about everyone loudly welcomed her and began asking her questions. She cheerfully told them about coming here from Germany and about some of her interests. Shinji was about the only boy not caught up in the excitement. He couldn't help but notice the difference between this friendly cheerful demeanor and the aggressive rude girl he'd met earlier.

For her part Rei merely looked on impassively. Shinji had told her about the Second Child's arrival and his initial impression of her. She'd known for some time that EVA Unit 02 and its pilot would be joining them. Rei thought it a good thing as they now had three EVAs with which to fight the Angels. She didn't particularly care about the Second Child's personality so long as she was a good pilot.

And so long as she did not try to take Shinji from her.

When Asuka finally got done with her long introduction the teacher told her to sit anywhere among the empty seats. A number of boys invited her to sit beside them. Instead though she deliberately took the empty desk in front of Shinji. She didn't say anything to either him or Rei though as the teacher began with the morning announcements.

XXX

As they usually did Shinji and Rei were sitting on a school bench quietly having lunch when Asuka stomped over to them. She had in her hands a small loaf of sweet bread and a can of juice.

"Move over stupid Shinji."

"Huh?"

"I said move over." Asuka snapped and sat down next to him. The sweet personality she had displayed in front of the class was nowhere to be seen. Shinji was forced to scoot closer to Rei as he suddenly found himself trapped between two girls.

Asuka looked over at their bentos with a frustrated scowl. "How come the two of you got lunches? Misato-san just handed me some money and told me to get something at school."

Most Japanese schools did not have cafeterias and did not serve lunches. Students were expected to bring their meals with them. Most schools did usually have a bake shop where forgetful or unlucky students could at least buy some bread or rolls to eat.

Shinji grinned. "You probably shouldn't expect Misato to make you anything. I don't think she knows how to cook."

Asuka looked even more unhappy as she tore off a piece of bread. "Hmmph, I can believe that. The only thing she has in her fridge is beer and snacks. So where did you get yours from?"

"Shinji made them," Rei said. Speaking up for the first time.

"_You _made them?" She peered at the lunch in his hands suspiciously.

"Uh, that's right," he said a bit nervously. Asuka was sitting awfully close. He wasn't used to anyone but Rei being so near. "Would you like a taste?" With his chopsticks he held out some of his food to her.

She looked dubious, but leaned in and took his offering.

"Hmmm, that's not _too _bad. It could be worse I suppose." She said. "Let me have another bite."

"Uh, okay."

By the time lunch was over Asuka had eaten about half of his bento. And somehow or other he'd wound up promising to make lunches for her from then on.

XXX

"Don't get the wrong idea," Asuka said later. "Just because I'm letting you make me lunches don't expect me to take it easy on you. I still intend to be the number one EVA pilot stupid Shinji."

"I told you before I don't care about that," Shinji said.

He, Asuka, and Rei were all at NERV headquarters and already in their plug suits getting ready to perform some tests.

"Does it matter who is ranked first?" Rei asked. "So long as we defeat the Angels is anything else really important?"

"Of course it matters!" Asuka said loudly. "My entire existence has been devoted to being the best! I was born to pilot an EVA and unlike you and stupid Shinji I'm a genius. I'm even a college graduate."

"Then why are you in our school?' Shinji asked.

Asuka shrugged. "NERV thought it would help me to adjust if I was surrounded by my peers. Pfft, as if a genius like me would need any help adjusting from a bunch of children."

"But you're the same age." Shinji said

"Only physically," Asuka stated proudly. "Emotionally and intellectually I'm already and adult."

"You don't seem like an adult to me," Rei said placidly.

"What did you say you blank slate?" Asuka demanded.

"I said that you don't seem like an adult to me," Rei replied unruffled. "You seem more like an angry child trying to act like an adult."

XXX

From a nearby control room Misato and Ritsuko watched on a monitor as Shinji jumped in front of a charging Asuka to keep her away from Rei.

"The Second Child certainly looks to be much more aggressive than either of our other two pilots." Ritsuko noted.

Misato let out a bit of a sigh. "She's always been like that. Asuka's never lacked self confidence or drive. She's always pushed herself to be the best."

Ritsuko looked over at her friend. "That's good isn't it? I mean she's only had one battle so far but it was a rousing success. She certainly did better in her initial engagement than either Shinji or Rei did. From her file she looks like an almost ideal candidate for a pilot."

"That's true," Misato admitted. "In a lot of ways Asuka is a born warrior. Even so, I worry about her. I don't know if she'll be able to handle the stress that comes with this job and this responsibility."

"Well time will tell I suppose," Ritsuko said. She pressed her thumb down on a call button. "Pilots, please enter you individual plugs. Since the Second Child has just joined us we'll be running a full battery of tests on all of you. Since Unit 00 is still undergoing repair and won't be combat ready for some weeks yet we'll concentrate on the pilots of Units 01 and 02."

XXX

In the dressing room Asuka stopped glaring at Rei and instead gave Shinji a very pleased look.

"Now I'll get to show you some of my awesome skills."

XXX

Since these were not activation or field tests the EVAs themselves would not be used. The sync tests and simulations would be run though the plugs without inserting them into the actual units. The first test was for synchronization. After about one hour Ritsuko was satisfied and called a halt.

"Well done everyone," she said.

"What was my sync rate?" Asuka asked eagerly. She was sure she'd done exceptionally well today.

"Your sync rate was 73.4% Asuka."

Inside her plug she was grinning from ear to ear. It was a new personal best.

Ritsuko continued. "You were considerably higher than Rei who was at 65.1%. And you were just a bit behind Shinji who was at 74.2%."

It took Asuka a second to process that.

"Gott im Himmel!" She shouted over the com link.

In the command room Ritsuko noted the sudden rise in her heart rate and pulse, as well as a drop in her sync rate of 3 points.

Ritsuko wasn't the only one concerned with Asuka's reaction.

"Is something wrong Asuka?" Misato asked over the com link. "All three of you did very well and we're quite happy with the results."

"Misato-san please have the monitoring equipment checked." Asuka asked. "There is just no way I could have a lower sync rate than stupid Shinji."

"What is that supposed to mean?" Shinji yelled.

"It means there is no way you could be better than me!"

Ritsuko watched as Asuka's sync rate plummeted another four points. "Asuka please calm down. There is nothing wrong with the equipment. Please remember that Shinji has been doing this even longer than you have. He just happens to have the higher rate today. That is not an indictment on your abilities as a pilot. Maybe at our next session you'll have the higher rate. Now let's move on to the next series of tests shall we?"

"Fine," Asuka muttered under her breath.

Ritsuko saw her sync rate struggle back up two points, but it got no higher.

XXX

The rest of the tests were battle simulations where the pilots were put through various scenarios both individually as a team.

In general Asuka did better than the others in the solo simulations. Ritsuko and Misato both couldn't help noticing that given the exact same scenarios and the exact same enemies Asuka was much more aggressive than her rivals. Whereas Shinji and Rei would cautiously approach the enemy or look for good cover Asuka would charge in with guns blazing eager to mix it up and get in close for the kill.

In the simulation her style worked very well since it only took one direct hit on the Angel's core to destroy it. She consistently eliminated her enemy faster than either Shinji or Rei. What worried the two women in the control room was the knowledge that the real Angels were never that easy to kill.

Things got worse when they began the group simulations.

XXX

"Hey! What are you doing?" Shinji yelled as a red EVA ran past him.

"You and the blank slate back me up!" Asuka ordered.

"That's not what Misato told us to do!" Shinji said.

"Chief Operations Officer Misato ordered us to launch a coordinated attack." Rei said.

"There's no time for that!" Asuka told her. "Just follow my lead and everything will be fine."

"Misato, what do we do?"

What Misato wanted was to stop everything in mid battle and yell at Asuka for ignoring her orders. But she worried that might cause more harm than good. Asuka would not respond well to being publicly dressed down.

"Go and support her for now."

"All right," Shinji said.

By the time he and Rei could catch up to her she had already eliminated the enemy.

"See?" Asuka gloated. "You can just leave everything to me."

"Pull her out and keep working Shinji and Rei," Misato said tightly.

"Right," Ritsuko answered.

XXX

"Just what eh hell was that?!" Misato grabbed hold of a very surprised Asuka and physically shoved her against a locker in the dressing room. "Why did you blatantly disobey me?!"

"Asuka's eyes were wide with both surprise and fear. She'd known Misato a long time and had never seen her angry like this before. "I just wanted to show everyone what I could do. Why are you mad? It worked out fine didn't it?"

"That's not eh point Asuka." Misato said roughly. "The point is that you don't get to pick and choose which orders you're going to obey! When I give you an order I expect you to carry it out. Even if you are talented that doesn't mean you can just ignore your superiors."

"But I'm the best!" She cried. "Why shouldn't I be trusted to handle the Angels?!"

"Because when you take reckless chances like that just to show off you aren't just putting your own life in danger! You're putting my life in danger, Shinji's, Rei's, Ritsuko's, and everyone else's! If we lose a battle, if one of the Angels defeats us, then the world ends. Do you _get_ that?"

"Well of course," she said defensively.

Misato let go of her and took a step back trying to compose herself. She _didn't _want to take away the girl's confidence of combative attitude. Those were the things that made her such a great asset as an EVA pilot. What she wanted was to rein her in a bit and keep her under control.

"No matter how good you are Asuka this job is too much for any one person to handle all alone. You're going to have to rely on Shinji and Rei to fight alongside you. You're going to have to rely on me to give you the right guidance at the right moment. You're going to have to rely on Ritsuko to keep your EVA and all your equipment functioning properly. You're going to need to rely on a lot of people Asuka. You're a part of the most important struggle in human history. You're an important part, but only a part. Stop thinking all of this is only about you, because it's not."

Asuka stood there leaning against the locker in stunned silence.

"If you should ever ignore my orders you'll regret it, is that clear?"

Asuka slowly nodded her head. She had never seen Misato as serious as she was at this very moment. "Very clear Misato-san."

"Good then you can get back to training."

XXX

An image on the first angel approached a facsimile Tokyo 3. As Shinji and Rei began to cautiously move out to engage it Unit 02 once again ran past them.

"Follow my lead and back me up!" Asuka called.

"But that's not what Misato wants!" Shinji protested.

"So long as I win everything else will be forgiven!" Asuka shouted defiantly, as much as for Misato as for him. "Just so long as I never lose everything will be fine! Now back me up stupid Shinji!"

Grumbling Shinji hurried after her. Rei followed as well without comment.

XXX

Up in the control room Misato bit her lip in frustration. Her words obviously hadn't gotten through to her. She didn't want to risk punishing her and possibly damaging what she suspected was a fragile psyche. With Unit 00 unavailable they needed her skills right now.

She could only hope that Asuka's recklessness would not lead to disaster.


	18. Lunch with Asuka

It was lunch time at school and Asuka was in her usual place; seated on a bench between Shinji and Rei. Also as usual she was cramming the bento Shinji had made for her into her mouth. Normally she went out of her way to appear as cute and ladylike as possible while at school. Lunch was the sole exception. She absolutely refused to eat what passed for breakfast in Misato's apartment and so was usually half starved by the time lunch rolled around. She also found Shinji's traditional Japanese cooking really tasty. Her dinner would either be eaten at a NERV commissary or would be something out of a microwave back at the apartment. Getting to eat Shinji's cooking had quickly become one of the highlights of her day and something she always looked forward to.

"Did you get up late this morning or something?" Asuka asked between bites. "Your lunch is pretty bland today."

Shinji leaned over just a bit to deliberately to look into her lunch box. It was already more than half empty. "I can see you don't like it," he said a bit dryly.

"Well it's not _awful_," she admitted sounding as though she were making a huge concession. She took another big bite and ate it with every sign of relish.

"If you don't appreciate Shinji's cooking you could always make your own bentos." Rei said in a polite voice.

"Hmmph, well I would if I knew how to." She ate another big mouthful.

"You never learned how to cook?" Shinji asked in honest surprise. Despite all the time spent together over the last two weeks here at school and in training he still didn't know much about her.

Asuka sent him an annoyed look and put her nose in the air. "When was I supposed to learn something as mundane as cooking? I had to spend all my time with academics and learning to master my EVA. Those were the _important _things. Any monkey can put food in an oven."

"Does that mean you're not as smart as a monkey?" Rei asked.

"Bitte?!" Asuka turned and glared at her. "What was that you little porcelain doll?"

"I was just curious since you seem to think it so easy."

For the life of her Asuka couldn't tell whether or not the girl was being sarcastic. Everything she said was spoken in that same monotonous dull monotone. She always came off as serious without even a hint of personality.

Except, on occasion, when she was talking about Shinji. The idiot Shinji appeared to be the girl's one and only vulnerable spot. The rest of the time Rei really might have been nothing but a wind up doll. For someone like Asuka who was consumed by her need to excel and receive acknowledgement Rei was an enigma. The girl lacked even the tiniest spark of ambition or drive. How the hell was someone like that an EVA pilot? It boggled the mind.

Stupid Shinji wasn't much better. He though at least had a little bit of pride. If she prodded him enough he would eventually respond. With Rei it was like trying to get a reaction from a boulder. By some stupid fluke Shinji even had better synch and weapon's accuracy rates than she did. Though of course he and Rei lagged far behind her in the battle simulations. (It never even occurred to her that her own actions in those simulations made it impossible for them to outperform her.) Asuka had no doubt that she was the best of the EVA pilots. She was a genius after all, a genuine prodigy. How could a blank slate or an idiot possibly compare?

She longed for the chance to really prove it in battle. She'd already defeated one Angel in single combat but felt the need to do it again in a group action. She wanted to really show everyone how much better she was than the other two. After that maybe, just maybe, they could become friends.

For Asuka had a terrible weakness of her own; one she hid with loud words and endless bravado. She was lonely. Since losing her mother she'd pushed people away, kept everyone at a safe distance. Always afraid that if anyone saw the real her they would be disgusted. Her own mother had tried to murder her and then committed suicide, the ultimate act of abandonment. How much had her momma hated her? What an awful thing she must be.

Yet no matter how much it had hurt she had survived. She had turned inward and decided she would be all right because she was special. She took comfort in the thought that she was unique. Millions of children had been tested after all and she had been chosen to pilot EVA. That _had _to mean something. So long as she knew she was extraordinary and possessed a particular destiny she knew she could preserve. She pushed aside all doubt and relentlessly drover herself to be the absolute best, nothing else would do. Along the way she had deliberately sacrificed her childhood and any sort of normal life. Friends, family, having fun, those things were for other people, _lesser _people. Someone like her didn't need any of that. Being special was the only thing that mattered.

So now here she was, the second child and the pilot of EVA 02. The person all humanity was counting on to defeat the Angels and prevent a Third Impact. Her name would go down in the history books. There would be statues of her. The whole damn world would acknowledge her. This was the destiny she'd been born to fulfill, the purpose of her whole life and the reason for all her sacrifices. She should have been happy.

Instead she felt even more isolated and alone than ever. She had come to NERV headquarters secretly eager to meet her fellow EVA pilots. She would never admit it to anyone but she had hoped that they would be like her. That at last she would meet people who could really understand her. Instead what had she gotten? A blank slate who didn't seem capable of any sort of emotion and a baka who just wanted to get along with everyone. _These _were supposed to be her equals? The people who were supposed to be like her? What a cruel joke.

Yet… they were EVA pilots like her. They'd even seen more combat than she had. They'd had to give up many aspects of a normal life and been forced to shoulder the responsibility for saving all mankind. In spite of which they both seemed more or less normal. They also seemed honestly happy. When they walked hand in hand together they practically radiated contentment.

Asuka desperately wanted to know how they managed that. She didn't want to be alone anymore. She wanted her fellow pilots to embrace her and bring her into the warm light. She wanted them to become her friends.

Unfortunately she had no idea how to make friends. The idea of opening herself up to others and treating them as equals was utterly foreign to her. All she really understood was how to make people admire her. So naturally she assumed that neither Shinji nor Rei would want to be friends until she had convinced them just how great she was. Only then might there be a possibility of friendship. It never even occurred to her that what she wanted might be there just for the asking.

"Would you like to learn how to cook Asuka?" Shinji asked with an open grin. "If you want you could come over after training and I could give you some lessons."

"Hmmph! As if there were anything useful someone like you could teach me." She shoveled the remainder of her meal into her mouth in record time and got to her feet. "I'll see you two later."

Shinji and Rei watched as she swiftly strode away. As soon as she was gone Rei slid over so she was closer to Shinji. "She is really very rude isn't she?"

"Yeah," Shinji said with a sigh.

"Why do you keep trying to be friends with her?" Rei asked curiously. There was no hint of jealousy to her question. She just wanted to know why he kept making the effort when it was so clearly unwanted.

"Because I don't think Asuka is a bad person," Shinji replied. "We're all in this together and it would only make sense if we all got along. Don't you want that too?"

"No," Rei answered immediately. "The only one I want is you Shinji."

He grinned and felt a simple pleasure at her words. Rei wasn't big on emotional displays but she also never said anything she didn't mean. He was about to say something else when he noticed a stir in the courtyard. A couple soldiers had just arrived and were hurrying over towards them.

"I think lunch is over," Shinji said.

XXX

"What have we got?" Misato shouted as she rushed into Central Dogma.

"Satellite and underwater sensors have picked up a large submerged object approaching the Japanese coast," Lieutenant Hyuga informed her.

"Fourth Armor Division and the UN's 255th air wing are already deployed," Lieutenant Ibuki added.

Above them on the massive overhead screen was the tranquil image of the lifeless ocean lapping up against a rocky coast. Tanks, artillery, and mobile rockets were shown either already in position or hurrying into place. The sky was filled by at least a dozen attack helicopters.

"Once more unto the breach, dear friends, once more," Fuyutsuki murmured.

"Commander?" Misato sounded confused. She had never read Henry the Fifth and wasn't really inclined to be thinking about Shakespeare at the moment.

"It's nothing," Fuyutsuki assured her. "Just some ramblings from an old professor. I leave the battle to you, you have my full confidence."

"Yes sir! I won't let you down."

He nodded and quietly departed leaving Misato fully in charge.

"Are the pilots in place yet?" Misato asked.

"Not yet maam," Lieutenant Aoba said. "They are on route and expected in seven minutes."

"What's the status of Unit 00?" Misato asked. It was a pointless question since she already knew. She asked anyway in the absurd hope she would be surprised.

Of course she wasn't.

"Unit 00 is still undergoing repairs and is not combat worthy," Hyuga said confirming what she already knew.

"Well I guess we'll have to wait awhile longer to have all three of them in combat together. Still Units 01 and 02 should be able to handle things."

"Unidentified object approaching landfall," Hyuga announced.

All eyes turned to the overhead.

The first sign of what was coming was a gigantic swell within the red ocean. The bulge hurried in towards shore. Then the water parted and the thing rose out of the water and onto land. It was massive, not just in height but in bulk as well. It had an elongated skull like an alligator's with rows of pointed teeth, each one larger that a car. The hollowed out eye sockets had a sickly yellow light. The skull rested at the end of a long serpentine neck. The enormous body was covered by black scales that reflected the sun's light with a deep sheen. Four clawed legs dragged it up out of the ocean and fully onto the coast. Behind it a whip like tail snapped back and forth like and angry cat's. A pair of bat like wings stretched out from its back.

"It's a freaking dragon!" Hyuga said in amazement.

Misato just smiled. "Well you don't see that every day."


	19. Fifth battle

**Author's Note: **It was pointed out to me by 'Amoral Philosopher' that since Adam and Lilith are Angels one and two Israfel would be the seventh angel and not the fifth as I originally put down. Also i anted to just state for teh record that while I consider Neon Geneis Evangelion one of those rare and genuine classics with great plot, drama, tragedy, and characters I will **never **a scene where the world is saved thriought the power of dance. **No Dancing!!**

XXX

All at once the human troops facing the enemy opened fire. Cannons blazed and rockets flew of their launch tubes. The soldiers facing this monster had to know what they were up against and how unlikely their survival was. None of them fled. Every last one of them fought as well as he could to hold back this threat to the human race. Everything that human courage and human weapons could do was being done. The overhead in Central Dogma filled with fire and explosion. The attack helicopters closed and pressed in their attacks. The shells and missiles struck all over the gigantic creature's body, including the red sphere in the middle of its reptilian chest.

Watching the battle Misato discovered everything useful within just a few seconds. "It's not even bothering to use its AT field," she noted with a grimace. That was a bad sign and suggested this Angel would be one of the more powerful ones.

It was an opinion borne out just a moment later when it opened up wide its jaw and spat out an energy beam. He beam swept across its front in a wide arc annihilating the tanks and other vehicles. They exploded at the beam's touch or vaporized completely. Against such a display of raw power the soldiers of the JSSDF were utterly helpless. It took only a couple sweeps of that energy beam to finish annihilating the ground forces.

That still left the helicopters, despite the slaughter they'd just witnessed they continued to fight launching salvo after salvo of missiles and blazing away with their gun mounts as well. It was a brave but futile display. One that could not possibly last long. The monstrous dragon stood back on its hind legs and spread its wings out wide. It beat its wings three of four times in quick succession creating a wind storm. The attack helicopters were caught in it like leaves in a gale. A few smashed into each other and exploded in mid air, the rest were sent tumbling out of control to crash into the ground.

With that the short battle was brought to its conclusion. Of the 4,000 or so soldiers who had just fought Misato was grimly certain that no more than a handful could possible still be alive. She gave her wrist watch a discreet glance. Their heroic sacrifice had bought them two additional minutes to prepare, nothing more.

On the overhead the dragon flapped its wings again and was quickly airborne. The image up on the overhead shifted a different angle from a source much further away. The enemy was gliding perhaps 500 feet above the ground and moving at a swift pace.

"Designate the enemy the Seventh Angel Israfel," Misato called out.

"Enemy is being tracked by radar," Hyuga announced. "Estimated arrival time in twelve minutes."

"As soon as the pilots are inside the geofront transform the city to battle settings. Once the EVAs are manned we'll decide where to deeply them and what strategy to use." For now that was all she could do. When the time came she would assist them as much as possible, but as always everything would depend on the EVAs and their child pilots. All at once Misato worried about how she had handled Asuka up to now. This Angel looked very formidable even against two EVAs. She hoped Asuka would set her ego aside when the time came and work close to Shinji.

XXX

Even though Unit 00 was undergoing repair and unavailable Rei had been brought along with Shinji and Asuka. She was in the female section of the locker room and had put on her plug suit. She would be available as a reserve pilot in case of an emergency. So she was able to observe Asuka as she dressed. The girl was humming and her hands were shaking just slightly, she was obviously eager.

"It's about time," Asuka said as her plug suit fastened to her body. "Now I'll get to show everyone who the best pilot is. Not that there could be any doubt any way."

"Are you going to follow the Lieutenant Commander's orders?" Rei asked quietly.

"What?" Asuka turned to the other girl with a frown.

"Are you going to follow Misato-san's orders?" Rei asked again. "You never follow them during training, will you follow them now?"

"What I'm going to do is destroy the Angel and save everyone! That's what I was born for!"

"That wasn't what I asked," Rei said politely.

Asuka glared at her. She couldn't help feeling annoyed at this blank slate's questioning of her ability. "You think Shinji is better than me, that's it isn't it? Just because he has higher synch rates and is a tiny bit better with a rifle doesn't matter. He doesn't have my innate skills or my warrior's heart! He can't compare to me!"

"Shinji doesn't want to beat you Asuka, he just wants to keep everyone safe. That is what Misato-san wants too."

"What and you think I don't?"

"No," Rei answered in a flat unemotional voice. "At least not as much as you want to show off to people. That worries me. If Shinji is hurt because of that I won't forgive you."

"Is that a threat?" Asuka said menacingly.

"Yes."

Asuka almost choked. "You're pretty willful for a doll you know! I don't have time for this now." She stormed out of the locker room past Rei and headed towards the cages.

The locker rooms were separated only by a thin partition. On his side Shinji had been able to hear every word. As he too left to go to his EVA he felt a mounting worry.

XXX

As the fifth Angel approached Tokyo 3's automated defenses opened fire on it. As before it refused to activate its AT field. Opening wide its jaws it again fired its beam obliterating a series of metal and concrete bunkers. It drew in its wings and stretched out its legs as it dropped out of the sky. It crashed near the center of Tokyo 3 with a massive shudder. Several blocks were instantly reduced to rubble beneath its feet and cars and debris were sent flying in all directions.

Down in Central Dogma Misato and her staff watched as it began tearing up sections of the city as it trudged towards the exact spot above them. That was anything but a surprise, all the Angles were inevitably drawn there.

"Listen up!" Misato called out over the com link. "We're going to hit this thing from both sides at once! The two of you need to work together and attack it simultaneously. No matter how strong it may be there's no way it will be able to hold off both of you. So I want you to go in together and assist each other. Is that clear?"

"Yes Misato," Shinji said at once.

"Roger," Asuka said. Inside her EVA she had an eager grin and was gripping her controls tight. All she could think of was victory, no other possibility existed.

"This is real combat and there are lives at stake so I _won't _tolerate any insubordination. I want you _both_ to follow my orders exactly as I give them." She had no doubts at all that Shinji would follow her orders.

"Yes Misato," Shinji answered.

"I know that was meant for me," Asuka's reply came back.

"It was meant for both of you; we need you both to work together. Now Unit 01 will deploy to exit point A-5 and Unit 02 to point C-3. That will put you on either side of the Angel. Advance with gunfire and see how strong the enemy AT field is. I'll direct you depending on how it reacts. Now prepare for launch."

XXX

EVA Units 01 and 02 rocketed up the tunnels leading up to the surface. Ordinary intersections were revealed to be hidden doors and slid open to allow both EVAs to exit. Beside both of them false buildings popped open to reveal huge guns.

Shinji quickly grabbed his and swung it in the direction of the Angel. He ducked behind an office building for cover and brought the weapon smoothly to his shoulder to fire it.

"Hyaaah!" A joyous cry came in over the com link.

Before Shinji could even begin to fire bullets blazed in from the opposite direction from an on charging Unit 02.

"Asuka don't!" Misato's voice warned to no effect.

Asuka ran in while blazing away with her gun aiming for the enemy Core. The bullets hit an AT field revealing its position. The Angel turned to face her which gave her an even clearer view of the huge Core implanted on its chest. Its jaw dropped and a beam of energy shot out. Asuka had her own AT field ready and it blocked the beam.

"That won't stop me!" The gun had run through its ammunition and was tossed aside. The guns were only for show anyway. Killing Angels was best done up close and personal. She pulled out her two prog knives. She would hack her way through the enemy AT field and kill it! The fact her EVA was dwarfed by the enemy didn't worry her. Though her Unit only came up to its shoulder she would still defeat it. She leapt at it and covered five city blocks, both her knives in hand. She sent her AT field out and pressed it against the Angel's to weaken it and aimed to cut through the section right in front of its Core.

She was so focused on her attack she never saw the tail as it whipped out and caught her mid leap, sending her sprawling into the ground.

"Asuka!" Shinji opened fire and moved to try and help her. Though the Angel now had its back to him its AT field still blocked his shots. It ignored him and set after Unit 02.

Asuka was just starting to get up when she felt a set of claws rake her back. She could feel her skin tear open and she cried out in surprise and pain. Blood spurted out of her EVA from three huge gashes. Before Asuka could react another claw came down on her head slamming her face first back to the ground.

"Aaaaarh!" Fresh pain hit her. She tried to focus and scramble away.

"Asuka!" Misato's voice came back to her. "Retreat! Shinji help her!"

As she tried to get Unit 02 out of harm's way the Angels claws rained down on her giving her no chance to get away. Her EVA's armor was being smashed and torn apart, it's body ripped open, as she was held down, unable to fight or even move.

"Get away from her!"

She heard Shinji's voice and suddenly the beating stopped.

XXX

While the Angel attacked Unit 02 Shinji was able to take out his prog knife and cut through the enemy AT field. The Angel continued beating on Unit 02 with its front claws and tried to take Unit 01's feet out with its tail.

Shinji had seen what it could do though and caught the tail with one hand.

"Get away from her!" Grunting with effort he yanked with all his strength and sent the massive Angel flying back over his head and off of Unit 02. The Angel was rolling through the wreckage, momentarily out of the fight.

"Asuka! Get to the nearest entry point for immediate withdrawal!" Misato ordered.

Asuka was finally able to get herself and her EVA back up. She clutched her head and felt a little woozy. Her entire back was fire and her head felt like it had been split open.

"Asuka your vitals aren't stable! You've suffered a concussion and you're in danger of passing out! Get out of there right now!"

"No," she said stubbornly. What had just happened? How could she be losing? Unit 02 swayed slightly in response to its pilot's condition.

"Asuka!' Misato cried urgently. "Your vital signs are dropping! You need to withdraw!"

From inside her plug the world around her was hazy. She wanted to continue fighting but didn't seem able to remember how. She could only stand there and watch as the Angel got back to its feet and charged at Shinji. Misato kept shouting about something but the words weren't clear.

She was an observer as Unit 01 ran straight at the Angel. She could only watch as they collided and as the much larger Angel pinned Unit 01 down underneath it. Then, the Angel bellowed and shook. It lifelessly rolled over freeing Unit 01. In its now broken Core was Unit 01's prog knife. She saw a huge cross of light rise up over the dead Angel. Now Shinji and Misato were both shouting something to her. She didn't understand what they were saying. She wasn't feeling good and could feel herself starting to fall.

As the darkness closed in the only thing she could think about was that she had lost.


	20. I won't forgive you

Cage 4 was a busy place. Work crews and heavy machinery swarmed all over the frame of Unit 02. Dozens of high powered drills were beginning the long and tedious process of cutting away and removing different sections of the ruined armor.

From an overhead walkway Ritsuko was overseeing the process. She was not the least bit surprised to see Major Katsuragi approach her. "You know I would have a full report for you by the end of the day." Ritsuko told her.

"I know, but this is too important to wait. Just how bad is it?"

"All things considered," Ritsuko replied. "We got off pretty lightly."

"Lightly?" Misato said with a sour look. "The repairs are going to cost billions of dollars, the UN is already screaming about it."

"Compared to the cost of losing an EVA that is still cheap."

Misato sighed. "Everything is relative I suppose. So how bad?"

"The rear side armor is a complete loss and there was damage to the head module as well. Fortunately none of the internal systems were significantly damaged. Once the armor is replaced Unit 02 will be ready for combat again. That should only take a few days. Plus Unit 00 is almost ready as well. We'll have three active EVAs available for the first time."

"That's assuming we have three pilots who can actually be trusted to use them."

"That's your responsibility," Ritsuko told her. "Mine is taking care of the EVAs."

"Great."

XXX

Asuka was lying in a hospital bed. Other that a mild concussion she had not been hurt. The doctor had informed her that they were keeping her 24 hours for observation after which she would be free to go. The doctor and the nurses had all been cheerful and supportive and simply oozing concern for the hurt little pilot.

Their happy faces made her want to scream.

_How? How could I have lost? How could Shinji have won?! _The memories of the battle replayed in her mind again and again. The way she had been overwhelmed. The way she'd been helplessly beaten. Worst of all the way Shinji had come to her rescue. He'd beaten the Angel single handed.

_He's a better pilot than I am. He's better than me._

She cursed the thought and the memories playing in her head. It couldn't be! It was impossible! She was a prodigy, a genius, a unique talent. She was a born warrior totally fearless and prepared to do anything to win. How could she lose to someone as ordinary and weak as Shinji? It just didn't make sense!

Those thoughts were all she could focus on. As the hours alone passed she sank deeper and deeper into a black mood. Being the best was the only thing she had. If she lost that what would she have left? People would laugh at her, the brilliant prodigy who couldn't even outperform an idiot. How everyone would be disgusted with her.

So when that afternoon when Shinji and Rei came to visit them she was anything but happy for the company. The fact Shinji was carrying some flowers with a silly grin on his face made her furious. Seeing Rei's blank disinterested expression was even worse somehow, as if she was not even worth the effort of pretense.

"What do you two want?" She snapped.

Shinji was surprised by her hostile tone, but still approached her bedside with the flowers. "We just wanted to come by and see how you were doing. We were worried about you."

"Shinji was worried," Rei corrected. "I only came because he asked me to."

"How sweet," Asuka said acidly.

Shinji sent Rei a pleading look and put the flowers on the small table by her bed. "We would have come sooner but we had class. The doctors say you'll be released tomorrow morning. That's great. We're both really glad you're all right. I'm sure you'll do better next time."

"What is that supposed to mean?" She asked angrily.

"What? I… I just mean you'll definitely do better next time. You shouldn't let it get you down that you wound up in the hospital, it happens. It's happened to me twice already."

"I can believe that." She said. "Someone like you fighting Angels I'm amazed you haven't been killed yet."

Shinji sent her a startled and hurt look.

"I believe you would have died pilot Asuka," Rei said calmly. "If not for Shinji's timely aid. As such I think you should speak to him with greater respect. I also believe a thank you would be in order."

"I'm not going to thank him! I would have definitely managed without his help!"

"That's okay Asuka you don't need to thank me," he replied. He tried to calm her. He couldn't understand why she was angry. "We're all in this together so we should all look out for each other right?"

"You can talk about working together as much as you want but I know what you really think." She said pointing at him accusingly. "You think because of what happened yesterday that you're better than me don't you?"

"What? No of course not. Like I said before I don't care who's better. I just want all of us to be able to work together, that's all."

"Don't lie! I _know _what you think of me! I know you're laughing at me! I know you think I'm nothing because I lost! That I don't matter anymore! Well don't believe it! I'm still miles ahead of both of you and I'll prove it the next time I fight! I definitely won't, lose to you again!"

He was backing away from her and her rage. She was sitting up in bed glaring at him practically screaming.

"Asuka I… I just mean…" He cut off when he felt Rei place a hand on his arm.

"Shinji-kun," she said quietly. "Maybe it would be best if you were to just go."

He looked at Rei and cautiously nodded. "Okay, what about you?"

"I'll be with you in a minute I just want a moment alone with Asuka."

"Ah, okay, but try not to upset her." He looked at Asuka and gave a slight wave goodbye. "I'll see you later." He then quickly left the room.

Asuka focused her glare on Rei as the girl approached her bedside. "What do you want? You going to pretend to want to be friends too?"

"No," she said calmly. Rei brought her hand back and slapped the other girl across the face as hard as she could.

Asuka was shocked. The last person to ever lay hands on her violently had been her mother. She put a hand to her red cheek and stared disbelievingly at Rei. "How dare you?!"

"I told you that if Shinji were hurt I wouldn't forgive you," Rei spoke in her usual moderate tone. "He wasn't hurt but your actions put him in danger. Be grateful that you have him to save you if need it again. Because I won't."

Asuka watched in stunned silence as Rei serenely left.

XXX

Fuyutsuki was seated kin his office overlooking the production reports for EVA units 03, 04, and 05. Units 03 and 04 were being built by the Americans in their facilities in Nevada and Massachusetts and were just about ready for field tests after which they would be sent here to help bolster their defenses. Unit 05 was still being completed in China and was weeks perhaps months away from completion.

According to the Vatican Treaty which all the participating nations had signed no country could have control of more than 3 EVAs at any one time. That meant once the additional EVAs were delivered some of the older models were likely to be put into storage. Though they would still not have more than three active EVAs the new units would still be a major help. Their designs incorporated everything that had been learned from the older versions and were naturally more powerful. While the stored units would still be available in case of emergency. That was all as it should be.

What worried him was the other report he had involving the mass produced models, units 06 – 13. Those were being built in NERV installations all over the world and would not be ready for months yet. While he had great technical data on the designs and equipment on the other three models the report concerning the mass produced ones provided nothing at all. Their combat potential was a complete mystery.

More importantly though there was no reason for their existence, no reason at all. The trillions of dollars being poured into their construction could be nothing but a vast waste. To the leaders of the UN and the various nation states they were a further safeguard against the Angels. Nothing but an extension of what was already in place. To the members of SEELE though, they were superfluous.

Everything that had happened up to this point had been predicted by the prophesies in the Dead Sea Scrolls. The scrolls had predicted the events of Second Impact and that mankind would have to defeat 12 Angels. Seven Angels had already been defeated, only five more remained. The three Units that were either complete or nearly complete might still have an important role to play in defeating them. These other eight would likely not be ready until it was too late. Even if they were built in time for the last one or two there would already be **six **EVAs on hand. There was just no point to them.

So why was SEELE building them? They had to have a purpose, that was obvious. Were they really being built to fight the Angels? Or were they meant to fight a different enemy? Fuyutsuki had been permitted to read the Dead Sea Scrolls and seen for himself how accurate they were. Had he been permitted to read _all _of them? What didn't he know? What hidden agenda was SEELE following?

Locked in a hidden safe was the embryonic form of Adam the first Angel from whom the other Angles had descended. Locked within the depths of Terminal Dogma inert and crucified was the body of Lilith the second Angel who was 'mother' to the human race. If Adam or the form of any other Angel came into contact with Lilith Third Impact would take place. Just as importantly whoever initiated Third Impact would have unimaginable power to reshape existence in any way he imagined. Though _only _after the Angels had been destroyed and the path to the Tree of Life left clear.

Were these EVAs part of some diabolical endgame? Fuyutsuki would not have been surprised. With five Angels remaining to be defeated SEELE might be moving its pieces into place for that day. He needed to start giving serious thought as to what _his _moves would be.

After all the fate of the world depended on it.


	21. A new student

Asuka was awake when Major Katsuragi came to see her. On look at her face told Asuka all she needed to know. Misato had _not _come here to coddle her or tell her how happy she was to have her alive and well. There were thunderheads trailing in behind her.

"I suppose you're here to yell at me," Asuka said sounding a little defensive. Her confrontation with Rei had left her shaken. Up until now people had done nothing but marvel at her talents and praise her for the part she would one day play in protecting the Earth. Ayanami's slap and her cold words had been a rude shock. Asuka found herself wondering if her place was as lofty and secure as she'd always thought it was.

"Being yelled at is the least you deserve," Misato told her in a harsh tone. "By all rights you should be placed under arrest. And before you say I would never dare you should know that Rei was arrested for refusal to obey orders. Don't think that just because you're an EVA pilot you're above the rules. Your EVA is not your own personal toy for you to play with as you see fit. It's the property of NERV and you are _permitted _to pilot it only so long as I and Commander Fuyutsuki believe we can depend on you. If we feel we can't you won't be allowed to pilot anymore."

"You can't replace me," she said trying to sound confident. "You need all the EVAs. Who would pilot Unit 02?"

"The Fourth Child will be arriving here in the next few days, we've decided to request Unit 03 be delivered to us as soon as possible, the Americans have agreed to step up field tests. We expect delivery of Unit 03 within a few weeks."

Asuka gasped. This was startling news to her. No one had even mentioned there was a Fourth Child.

"You should also know that we have developed an emergency backup system that can control an EVA even without an onboard pilot," Misato frowned at the mention of that. The Commander had agreed with her that the plug system would only be used as an emergency backup. She didn't like the idea of relying on it in place of an actual flesh and blood pilot. Asuka didn't need to know that though. "Get it into your head Asuka! You're very important, but you are _not _irreplaceable."

Asuka stared back at her. _I'm replaceable? But I can't be! _Her entire life had been dedicated to becoming an EVA pilot. If she wasn't that then what was she? What was the point to all those sacrifices? _If I can't pilot EVA then I'm nothing. _"Are you… are you replacing me then?"

Misato shook her head. "No one wants to replace you Asuka, like I said you _are _very important. But you have to stop thinking that it's just you out there. We're trying to save all of humanity, that's too big a job for any one person to handle. You are part of a team, not just with Shinji and Rei but with the Commander, me, Ritsuko, and all the thousands of people who are supporting you both within and outside of NERV. We are all in this together! If we fail the whole human race ends. We each need to do our part to make that doesn't happen. Asuka I need to know I can depend on you to follow my orders."

The implications were clear. If she refused she would be replaced.

She would rather die.

"I understand," she answered in a small voice.

Misato nodded. "I really hope you do. Because if anything like this happens again I will bar you from so much as touching an EVA and very likely have you court-martialed. There is also one more thing I want to tell you. According to the Vatican treaty no nation is permitted to have more than three active EVAs. When Unit 03 arrives we'll circumvent hat for a short time, but eventually we'll be compelled to place one of the EVAs in storage. Originally the plan was to store the prototype Unit 00, but nothing has been permanently decided."

"I see," she answered bitterly. "So if I don't do as I'm told you'll not only arrest me but you'll lock away my EVA too."

"I'm sorry if this seems harsh Asuka, but you have brought this on yourself." She probably should have been stricter with her from the start; she was having to make up for that now. "Anyway I'll have a nice meal ready for you when you come home tonight. Would you like me to pick up some Chinese or would prefer I order a pizza?"

"If it's all right with you Katsuragi-san I'd like to request I be given my own quarters. Would that be all right? Or do you want to keep me under your eye like a prisoner?"

Misato sighed. "If that's what you want Asuka I'll arrange it for you. I wish that…"

"Thank you Katsuragi-san," Asuka said in a brittle voice. "If you don't mind I'd like to get some rest, or did you have some more instructions for me?"

"If you want to be difficult you can Asuka, but I'm not asking anything of you that isn't asked of every member of the military and of NERV, myself included."

Asuka refused to look at her or respond.

XXX

The next day when Asuka returned to class her fellow students made a big deal in welcoming her back. They'd been told she'd suffered minor injuries during the attack and had been in the hospital. Shinji had been as loud as anyone else in greeting her. Rein had remained seated and silent the entire time.

When lunch time came around she found her own spot in the school yard well away from Shinji and Rei. She'd bought some sandwiches in a convenience store before coming to school and was setting down to eat them when Shinji came over to her holding a bento.

"Hey Asuka, I made you lunch. Why don't you come sit with me and Rei?"

"No thank you, I don't need your pretend sympathy. You'll be happy to know that Katsuragi-san has put me firmly in my place. I have to be an obedient little doll from now on or I lose my place as an EVA pilot. You don't need to bother pretending to be nice to me anymore. You don't need to make me any bentos either. In fact why don't you go ahead and rub my nose in it? You're the number one pilot Shinji, congratulations."

He looked uncomfortable and unhappy. "Asuka no one made me be nice to you! I've told you before it doesn't matter to me who ranks where. I just want us to get along and be friends."

"I don't need friends," she told him and began eating her sandwich.

He stood there a moment just holding his bento.

She tried to ignore him but finally looked up at him angrily. "What?"

He gave her a sad smile. "You know I really admire you."

She blinked in surprise. She certainly hadn't expected to hear that.

"You know the very first time I saw an Angel I nearly wet myself, and it was on a screen. The very first time I went into battle I wanted to run away, I was terrified. The only reason I was able to fight was because I was thinking about protecting Rei. The truth is I'm a coward. Every time I go out to fight I'm scared. Every time the only thing I want to do is run away." He told her

He gave her an embarrassed smile. "That's why I admire you; you really aren't scared at all are you? You charge right in without a second thought _wanting _to fight them." He shook his head in wonder. "How do you do that?"

A few days ago she'd have thought nothing of his words, she'd have taken them as her due. Now though she looked at him in surprise. Everyone else had been eager to remind her that she had faults. It made her suddenly happy to hear his honest words of praise.

"Baka," she told him dismissively. "It's easy, I'm not afraid of dying."

"You're not?"

"Nein." She shook her head.

"If you're not afraid of dying what are you afraid of?"

_Of being left all alone, that's much worse than death could ever be. _"Baka, I'm not afraid of anything."

Shinji slowly nodded and looked at her in admiration. "Here," he set down the bento beside her. "I've already made it so please eat it. It'll just go to waste otherwise."

She looked at the lunch box. "Hmph, fine, I wouldn't want it to go to waste."

Shinji returned to Rei's side to eat his own lunch. Asuka ate she thought it one of the best meals she'd had kin a very long time.

XXX

At the training sessions after school Asuka no longer insisted on charging at the illusionary enemies while Shinji and Rei followed after her. She followed her orders without comment. Misato would have preferred she had done so more willingly, but was satisfied with the results. So long as Asuka obeyed her orders that was enough.

The following day at school Asuka had plopped herself down between Shinji and Rei demanded Shinji giver her her bento. She was soon dominating the conversation again as she always had. Shinji appeared pleased at her return to form while Rei was silent about her thoughts.

She put up with Asuka because she was supposed to and because Shinji wanted her to.

XXX

Since the first Angel attack people had been leaving Tokyo 3 and the class had been slowly shrinking. So when Friday came and they received a new transfer student it caused a large stir.

It was a boy this time. A handsome looking boy with silver hair and red eyes that were similar to Rei's.

"Hello everyone," he said in a cultured pleasant voice. Shinji had he odd sense he was looking directly at him. "My name is Nagisa Kaworu; please take good care of me."


	22. The Angel of Death

Kaworu came over and sat at one of he open seats near Shinji and Rei. His eyes were on Shinji to the exclusion of all others. His smile was wide and inviting. Shinji smiled back, not wanting to make he new student feel unwelcome. Rei looked on with a passive calm, keeping whatever thoughts she had to herself. Asuka looked on blatantly frowning. She thought the bit a bit too charming.

XXX

Following class Shinji and Rei were in the music room practicing with cello and violin respectively. Like everything else the music club had suffered since the attacks on Tokyo 3 had begun. At the beginning of the school year there had been 20 members. Now there were only 5. They'd been planning to put on a free concert for the school's cultural festival. What sort of performance they would be able to put on with such a reduced group was open to question.

Not that Shinji or Rei worried about it. They had been playing together as a duo since long before coming to this school. They were happy just being able to play together. They also had far more important things to worry about.

They were only beginning to play when the door to the music room opened.

Kaworu popped his head in with a smile. "Ah, I see this is the right place." He stepped inside. "May I join you?"

Shinji and the others all stopped to look at him curiously. "You play an instrument?"

"I play piano," he strolled in and sat himself down at the room's vacant piano. He immediately began to play Beethoven, and to play it flawlessly. When he finished everyone in the room with the exception of Rei applauded.

"Wow," Shinji said sounding quite impressed.

Kaworu smiled back at him obviously pleased. "Did you like it?"

Shinji nodded. "That was great. I had no idea you could play so well."

"I'm a man of many talents Ikari-kun," he replied happily. "Perhaps we can play a duet together sometime?"

"I am the only one who Shinji plays duets with," Rei told him calmly.

Kaworu continued to smile unfazed. "Well, I suppose we could always try a threesome, though those can be a bit complicated some times."

XXX

"Hey! what are you doing here?" Asuka demanded. "This is a restricted area!" She Shinji and Rei were inside NERV headquarters headed to the pilots' locker rooms when they had come across the new student.

"I know," he said pleasantly and produced his NERV ID for them. "I am the Fourth Child, as of today I'll be joining all of you as an EVA pilot. I look forward to working with all of you, Soryu-san, Ayanami-san, and especially you Ikari-kun."

"Ah, I look forward to that too," Shinji said. He sent a look Rei's way.

"I will work with you if I am ordered to." Rei said.

"Er, don't take offense at that," Shinji said. "She's like that to everyone at the beginning."

"You know the way you greet Shinji sounds sort of gay," Asuka pointed out.

"I'm sorry if my desire to express my affection and admiration offends. That is not my intent. I wish only to be open and honest with the yearnings of my heart."

Shinji gave him a nervous and questioning look while Rei frowned slightly.

"That sounds even more gay," Asuka muttered.

XXX

Misato and Ritsuko were monitoring the sync tests of all four of the EVA pilots.

Shinji was leading the way with a sync rate of 74.6. Surprisingly Kaworu was a close second at 73.9. Rei was third with 65.2 and Asuka was bringing up the rear at 58.1.

"All four pilots have good sync rates," Misato nodded approvingly.

"Have you decided yet which EVA to put in storage?" Ritsuko asked.

"Right now I'm leaning towards Unit 02," Misato told her. "But I'll hold off on making a final deciding until I've seen Kaworu and his EVA in action."

"I still find it hard to believe that with everything going on they won't let us keep all four active," Ritsuko said with a frown. "Even with the fate of the world literally in the balance politics still rears its ugly head."

"If you think I'm going to argue with you you're wrong," Misato said. "Do we have an update on when we'll be able to get our hands on Unit 03?"

Ritsuko shook her head. "Nothing new there. The Americans have stepped up field tests but say they won't be able to ship it to us for at least two more weeks."

"Once we get it we'll tell the different member nations we need time to shake down the new model and that it won't be ready for immediate service. That should give us a little leeway as far as the treaty goes."

"Only until Unit 03 sees actual combat though," Ritsuko pointed out. "As soon as that happens they'll start screaming that you put one of them in storage."

"I know, but by that point I should have a good idea of who I want to keep as active pilots and who I'll want in the reserve role."

"You want Asuka to be the reserve," Ritsuko stated with certainty. "You're not sure about her anymore."

"No I'm not," Misato didn't bother to deny it. "But then I'm not sure about Kaworu either. His personnel file is mostly blank while obviously I have no idea how he'll perform in live combat. For all her faults Asuka at least is a known quantity. I want to see how he performs before I make any final decisions. And who knows? Maybe Asuka will prove herself before then. If anything happens before Unit 03 arrives it will be up to those three."

XXX

Kaworu held his own in the simulated combat with his more experienced peers. Even Asuka had to admit a grudging respect.

Seeing him perform so well did not make her happy though. She recalled the conversation with Misato and knew she was in real danger of being replaced.

Shinji and Rei had no such worries, Shinji welcomed him whole heartedly, while Rei was silent as usual.

XXX

Dressing in the men's locker room following training Kaworu and Shinji chatted for a bit.

"I really hope you and I will become close, Ikari-kun. that is my heartfelt desire."

"Well I certainly want us to be good friends and teammates," Shinji said feeling just a little bit wary.

Kaworu smiled at him just as if he could read his mind. "Do I make you nervous Ikari-kun?"

"Ah, no, not really. I don't think it's a bad thing that you're friendly." _Though Asuka is right that you do come off as a little gay. _

"Hearing that makes me very happy." He placed a warm hand on Shinji's shoulder.

Shinji tried not to squirm.

"Well, I will see you in class tomorrow Ikari-kun."

"Ah, right, I'll see you tomorrow."

Shinji let out a sigh of relief when Kaworu left.

XXX

Kaworu was at the elevator . When its doors opened Rei was standing inside.

"Ayanami-san," he greeted.

"Nagisa-san," she said politely.

He stepped into the elevator and the doors shut.

"I know what you are," Rei said quietly as they began to ascend.

Kaworu smiled at her. "I know. We are much alike you and I, and we both love the same thing."

Her red eyes burned into his, the first sign of emotion he had seen from her. "Shinji-kun is mine," she told him with a bit of anger touching her voice. "I won't share him."

"The quality of mercy is not strained, it droppeth as the gentle rain from heaven. Upon the place beneath. It is twice blest: it blesseth him that gives and him that takes." Kaworu quoted. "Won't you show me mercy Ayanami-san? I have waited all my life to be with him."

"I have read all of Shakespeare's plays," Rei told him. "I can quote from them as well; If you prick us, do we not bleed? If you tickle us, do we not laugh? If you poison us, do we not die? And if you wrong us, shall we not revenge?" She gave him a hard look. "I love Shinji-kun and I won't let anyone come between us, I won't share him."

The elevator halted and Kaworu stepped off with a friendly wave. "I'll keep that in mind Ayanami-san."

"I know how this will end," she said quietly.

"So do I," he said pleasantly as he doors began to close. "You are the Angel of Death Ayanami Rei."

The doors shut and the elevator continued upwards.

"Yes, I know," she said to the empty space.


	23. Cookies for Shinji

It was a beautiful sunny Saturday and the two of them were by the lake having enjoyed a relaxing picnic.

Rei had bought a sky blue sundress that had really fit her perfectly and Shinji had loved seeing her in it. Right now he was lying on his back in the grass with his head resting comfortably on her lap. Her fingers were running through his hair. The sun was warm and here was a gentle breeze blowing. His eyes were closed and he was content.

Even though it was Saturday they would have to report into headquarters in a few hours for another battery of sync tests and practice sessions. Sooner or later there would be another attack by an Angel. He would again be forced to fight in order to protect all mankind.

More importantly he would fight to keep Rei safe.

For right now though life was sweet. This was all that he wanted, to be with Rei. If only he could stay with her like this forever.

"I'm sorry that Hikari is leaving," she said as she continued to stroke his hair.

"Me too," he murmured. "All of our old school friends are gone."

She had told them just yesterday that her family was leaving Tokyo-3. She wouldn't be back, one more part of their world was gone.

"I'm disappointed that they cancelled the class trip and the cultural festival," Shinji added. "I was really looking forward to those."

"We would never have been allowed to go on the class trip," Rei pointed out.

"Well **now **we wouldn't," he agreed. "Before the Angels attacked though I think they would have let us go. It would only have been for three days."

"No they would not have," Rei said with certainty. "Commander Ikari would have still been in charge."

Shinji let out a sour grunt. "Yeah you're right, he would never have let us go." Shinji opened his eyes to look up into Rei's loving face. She had one of her small smiles that belonged only to him. "I'm glad my father's not around any more to control us. Wherever he is I hope he's miserable and alone."

Shinji still believed his father was alive and working somewhere for NERV. Rei knew better. There was no sign of guilt or concern though at the mention of Shinji's father.

"I am certain that wherever Commander Ikari is now it is where he belongs."

Shinji gave a slight nod and thought nothing more of it.

XXX

Asuka was lying on her bed staring up at the ceiling.

"Alone again," she muttered. "Some things never change."

Her homework was all done. For a university graduate it was snap. There was nothing on television she had any interest in watching. she didn't feel like going on line or listening to music. She was just simply bored with everything.

She was actually looking forward to the sync tests and training because it would at least give her something to do.

She didn't want to admit to herself that she was also looking forward to it because it was chance to hang out with baka Shinji.

XXX

"Here Ikari-kun, I made these for you." Kaworu handed a small cardboard box wrapped in a pink bow.

They were outside the pilots' locker rooms standing there with Rei and Asuka.

"What is it?" Shinji accepted the gift and opened it. "Cookies?"

"They are chocolate chip, I hope you like them." Kaworu said proudly.

"You bake?" Shinji asked. He tried one and gave a startled hum of approval. "Wow! These are really good."

"Thank you."

"You know you're kind of amazing Kaworu. Seriously, you're an EVA pilot, a musician, and a great cook!" Shinji took another bite of the cookie.

"I am a man of many talents."

Rei had a slight frown on her face and was standing right at her boyfriend's shoulder. "Shinji-kun that describes you as well."

"Do you have any idea how gay you seem right now?!" Asuka barked. "Seriously! Making cookies for another guy? Why don't you just grab his ass and start making out with him?"

Kaworu sent her an amused grin. "Would that be considered appropriate?"

Asuka began to turn red and make a choking sound.

"Shinji-kun go into the boy's locker room and change," Rei told him. "Kaworu will wait out here for you to finish."

"And give me those!" Asuka snatched the box from his hands. "Like a boy needs to get cookies!" She took one and crammed it into her mouth. "Huh, they're… not… even… that… good." She swallowed what was in her mouth and grabbed another one.

"Uh, okay," Shinji went into the boy's locker room as both Rei and Asuka waited outside like a couple of guard dogs to keep an eye on Kaworu.

The silver haired boy smiled at the two girls. "You know I am just trying to be friends with Ikari-kun. I don't mean him any harm."

"Shinji-kun has me he doesn't need anyone else." Rei said.

Asuka glanced at her as she ate another cookie. "Wait, what does that mean?"

"It means Shinji-kun has me to take care of him," Rei told her. "I have always been the one by his side. I have loved him and protected him and cared for him for as long as we have known each other. So long as he has me Shinji-kun doesn't need anyone else."

"Just because he has you doesn't mean he can't have other people in his life," Asuka told her.

"I agree," Kaworu said.

"You stay out of this," Asuka snapped. She got another cookie.

"You know I didn't bake those for you," Kaworu pointed out. "Please at least leave some for Ikari-kun to enjoy."

XXX

"Asuka's sync rate is down significantly," Ritsuko pointed out.

The other three pilots were hovering about he same rates as they'd had for the past week. For some reason though Asuka's rate had plummeted more than a full ten points down to 45.2%. Thirty percent was considered the bare minimum for combat effectiveness.

"If it drops much further I may not be able to deploy her," Misato said with real concern. It would still be another week before Unit 03 was delivered. "I wonder if I should try and see if Kaworu can pilot Unit 02."

"If you do that you'll likely shatter Asuka's confidence completely," a familiar male said from the entrance of the observation room.

The two women turned to look at him in surprise.

"Kaji what are you doing here?" Misato's voice was cold and unforgiving. "This is a restricted area. No matter who you may know being here is a serious security breach."

"Don't worry about it Misato," he said pleasantly and showed her his NERV ID. At it's bottom was a black bar that symbolized AAA Level clearance.

Her eyes turned to angry slits as she looked at him with suspicion. She was Chief Operations Officer and _her _clearance was only A Level. "Where did you get that?"

"Commander Fuyutsuki was kind enough to provide it for me. He's asked me to remain at headquarters for a time to help him with certain tasks."

"What tasks?" Misato demanded. "No one told me anything about this!"

"It doesn't concern the EVA pilots or tactical plans for dealing with the Angels so there was no need for you to know," he said with a teasing laugh.

Misato could feel a vein in her head getting ready to burst.

"Anyway I have an idea for helping Asuka," Kaji went on entering the observation room and joining them.

"What's your idea?" Ritsuko asked curiously. She knew Misato would sooner die than ask him for help.

"She's probably feeling stressed with everything that's happened to her lately," Kaji said. "Let's giver her a chance to relax and feel comfortable with her fellow EVA pilots."

"And how do we do that?" Misato asked through pursed lips.

XXX

"A birthday party?" Asuka said in surprise.

"That's right," Kaji told the four pilots. "I've rented a karaoke room and food and drinks will be on me." He gave them a good natured laugh. "I won't expect any of you to bring me any presents just bring yourselves tomorrow and we can relax, sing songs, and get to know each other. What do you all say?"

"Well I have nothing pressing tomorrow, if it's free I don't mind," Asuka said. She'd only met Kaji-san shortly before coming here to Tokyo-3. He seemed like a good guy and attending a party was better than sitting alone in her apartment.

"I will attend if I am ordered to," Rei responded.

"This isn't a mission Rei," Kaji told her. "It's just a pleasant social gathering."

"It sounds like fun," Shinji said. "I'll definitely go."

"If Ikari-kun is going I will also attend." Kaworu said.

Rei subconsciously drew closer to Shinji. "I'll go."

"Great," Kaji said. "Let's meet tomorrow at noon." He gave them the address.

XXX

The next day the four EVA pilots arrive at the karaoke bar and were directed to the room in reserve. Along with Kaji Misato was there as well to keep an eye on things.

The two adults had beers while the kids had sodas and iced tea.

Asuka was the first to volunteer to sing and surprised everyone when she pulled it off rather well.

Kaworu went up next and serenaded Shinji with a rendition of 'Fly Me to the Moon.'

Shinji and Rei then performed a passable duet on a traditional Japanese love song.

Kaji then sang, 'Lover Come Back' while looking at a blushing Misato.

When her turn came Misato belted out a raucous version of, 'These Boots were Made for Walking.'

As the party went on the mood lightened and most of the participants, save for Rei, were soon relaxing and enjoying themselves. Especially Misato. Though she had originally come with the intent of providing some adult supervision she was soon drunk on the unlimited supply of free beer.

She dragged the other two girls up to the small stage and compelled them to sing, 'Proud Mary.' As they began a chorus of 'Rollin' on the river' Kaji took the opportunity to slide over next to Kaworu and begin a quiet conversation with him.

"How are you enjoying the party Kaworu?"

The boy nodded to him politely. "I am enjoying it very much Ryoji-san."

"No need to be so formal!" The adult said with a laugh. "Please call me Kaji."

"As you like Kaji-san."

He sighed and shook his head. "You know you're a real mystery."

"Am I?" The boy asked innocently. "I have always tried to be open and honest about myself."

"Well that's strange to hear considering your personnel file is largely blank. There are school records and almost nothing else. No information on family, no medical history, not even any records on your EVA training."

"I am an orphan so I have no family. As for the rest," he gave a mild shrug. "I have no idea why it would be missing. I suggest you contact NERV's American branch they should have all of that."

"The Commander has contacted them, multiple times, They are insisting they are having delays gathering your information. That's a blatant lie of course. An EVA pilot's information would be kept under lock and key." He peered closely at the silver haired teen. "Any idea what they're trying to hide from us?"

If the subtle accusation made Kaworu nervous he gave no sign of it. "I have no idea," he answered pleasantly. "Like I said I have nothing to hide Kaji-san."

"I'm glad to hear that," Kaji told him. "I intend to learn everything I can about you."

"That's nice."

Kaji was slightly disappointed that his mild attempts to make the boy nervous had no effect. There was no chance that he was as innocent as he pretended. There was definitely something suspicious about him. He would need to be careful as he investigated him though. Only SEELE would have the necessary pull to hide information from NERV. The question was _why_. What were those men up to?

As Misato brought the song to a crashing end she released the girls and Kaji slid back to his original seat. He had to be patient and not too heavy handed. In this shadow battle information was the ultimate weapon.

Asuka was in the middle of the Scorpions classic, 'Winds of Change' when Misato's cell began to beep.

"Yes?" She answered blearily. Her jovial mood vanished in a heartbeat. "Damn it! All right, have cars sent here immediately I'm in no condition to drive." Everyone in the room could hear Ritsuko's voice blaring on the other end causing Katsuragi to wince. "It was my off day! I'm entitled to have a beer or two! In any case the pilots and I will be there soon." She snapped her phone shut.

"It's an attack isn't it?" Shinji asked with depressing certainty.

"That's right," Misato's voice was less slurred than it had been just a few minutes ago. "You, Rei, and Asuka will prepare for deployment. Kaworu will be in reserve."

Two army vehicles arrived in just a couple minutes and soon they were all headed back to NERV headquarters.


	24. The Eighth Angel

When Misato arrived in Central Dogma Ritsuko was there waiting with a pot of coffee.

"You know you're a disgrace right?" The blonde doctor told her handing her a mug filled to the brim.

"Oh leave me alone! It was my off day!" She accepted the mug and drank the strong black coffee.

"So you decide to spend it getting drunk in front of children?" Ritsuko's tone was dry enough to salt fish.

"It was a birthday party," she muttered and hurried over to her usual station. "So what's the situation?"

Up above on the massive overhead screen was the image of a black sphere approaching the Earth's atmosphere. As she watched battle satellites fired off N2 mines at it. Dozens detonated against it to no effect.

"The enemy is designated the eighth Angel Sahaquiel," Lieutenant Maya informed her. "It's currently on trajectory to strike the Earth."

"Where is it's impact point?" Grinning Misato brought the coffee to her lips. "No wait, let me guess. Here?"

Maya nodded. "Super computer MAGI predicts Tokyo-3 will be the impact point. Likelihood is 99.999999%"

"How long until expected impact?"

"Six hours and 12 minutes," Shigeru told her.

"Good," she said with relief. "That gives me plenty of time to sober up."

"Will you be serious!" Ritsuko snapped. "The Angel's AT field is so strong it can even bend light. If it strikes the ground all that energy will be converted into explosive force."

"So basically it's a huge bomb heading our way," Misato confirmed.

"One with the potential of several large megaton nukes," Ritsuko told her. "If it hits Tokyo-3 the city as well as the geofront and NERV headquarters will be vaporized."

"Is there any way to intercept it and shoot it down?"

"Its AT field makes that impossible." Makoto told her.

She sighed. "Why am I not surprised? So basically we're going to need a miracle to stop this thing and save humanity. Why do I have this sense of déjà vu?"

"Will you _please _take this seriously?" Ritsuko asked her.

"Who the hell is kidding? This is going to take a miracle."

"Do you have a plan of action in mind?" Commander Fuyutsuki asked with his usual calm deliberate manner.

"Well if we can't shoot it down and can't let it land there doesn't seem to be any other choice but to try and catch it."

Everyone turned to stare at her as though she were crazy. Even Fuyutsuki lifted an eyebrow.

"Please tell me that's the alcohol talking," Ritsuko moaned.

"Well does anyone else have a better idea then?"

Misato waited but no one had anything to say. Smiling she drank some more coffee.

XXX

The four pilots were in a break room. There were muffins and donuts and other snacks along with coffee, tea, and soda. All the pilots had their plug suits on including Kaworu. His suit was a navy blue with 03 stamped on the back in white.

They were all sitting together at a small table. Shinji was flanked with Rei in one side and Kaworu on the other while Asuka was sitting across from him.

"This sucks," Asuka grumbled. "I hate being ready and having to just wait."

"Is this normal?" Kaworu asked sounding just a bit curious. "This is my first time experiencing an attack."

"Yeah it is," Shinji told him. "Being an EVA pilot involves a lot of waiting knowing you're going to have to fight. Sometimes when the attack comes there's no time to waste and they send you right out. I think I like that better, you don't spend hours dreading what you know is coming."

"Baka Shinji!" Asuka growled at him. "What's the use in being scared? You should just think about what you're going to do to the enemy and how you're going to win! Don't waste time thinking about what could go wrong."

He sent he redhead a sheepish look. "Sorry, but I can't seem to help it. I'm just not as brave as you are Asuka."

Rei placed a loving hand over his. "That's not true Shinji-kun. Doing what you have to even though you're afraid makes you braver than any of us."

"That's right," Kaworu agreed and placed a hand on his shoulder. "You are certainly very brave Ikari-kun."

Rei's eyes narrowed to slits as she stared at the overly familiar touch by Kaworu.

"You know you really are a dummkopf," Asuka muttered. "But they're right you are brave. Try to have a little more confidence in yourself. You **are **an EVA pilot after all."

Shinji smiled gratefully at her kind words, even if delivered a bit harshly. "Thanks Asuka."

Seeing Shinji's sincere smile caused her to blush slightly and look away in sudden agitation.

Rei sent a frown her way and tightened her hold on Shinji's hand just a tad.

"So how do you pass the time as you wait?" Kaworu asked.

"Mostly we just talk," Shinji said, "Though if we have some cards we'll also play some, that helps the time go by."

"Really?" Kaworu asked pleasantly. "You know there's game I've always wanted to play and it doesn't require cards." He looked about the room. "Do we have a bottle we can use?"

XXX

"Ah, I'm sorry Misato-san, but could you repeat that?" Shinji asked.

"It's really very simple," she said. "At this moment an Angel is hurtling down from space with an impossibly strong AT field that it intends to use as its weapon to destroy Tokyo-3 and NERV headquarters. The three of you are going to use your own AT fields to catch it and then destroy it before it can hit the ground. That's simple enough isn't it?"

The EVA pilots all looked at each other.

Rei leaned in staring at her suspiciously. "Officer Misato are you _still _drunk?"

Ritsuko burst out laughing as Misato let out a frustrated growl.

"Given the situation this is our only alternative. The three of you will be deployed throughout Tokyo-3 and as it approaches you will move to intercept it. One of you will have to catch it and hold it suspended in you AT field as the other two finish it off. Since our calculations won't be exact you'll need to rely on your own instincts to get to the proper place in time to perform a miracle."

XXX

Units 00, 01, and 02 were stationed at their various start points. To maximize their speed and freedom of movement their cables would be released at the very start of the operation. From that point on they would have exactly five minutes to catch and defeat the Angle before they ran out of power.

Five minutes to decide the fate of the world.

Inside Unit 01's entry plug Shinji felt unnaturally calm. He was sure that once things began he would be afraid again, he always was, but for the moment he was at peace. There was no place on earth where he felt more comfortable than in the cockpit of his EVA.

He knew that was weird. A person shouldn't feel relaxed inside the world's most advanced and deadliest weapon. He wondered if the reason for his comfort was the LCL that filled the entry plug. It had a unique and reassuring scent to it one that reminded him of his faint memories of his mother.

And of Rei.

Inside Unit 00 Ayanami Rei appeared as calm and tranquil as she usually did.

Her mind though was troubled.

The thoughts that were causing her to worry had nothing to do with the desperate battle they were about to undertake. It actually mattered very little to her whether she lived or died. She'd already died twice after all, for her it wasn't a very big deal.

She also didn't care about Third Impact or the fate of humanity. She had always seen herself as an outsider and had understood from the very beginning what she was destined to do. She'd made a few friends but had never developed any real empathy for people in general. Only two people had ever mattered to her; Commander Ikari and Shinji-kun. Thoughts about Shinji were what troubled her.

Specifically she was thinking about the way Asuka and Kaworu were acting towards him. Almost from the very beginning Shinji had been hers exclusively. Commander Ikari had not paid him any attention so she had gotten to monopolize his time as they grew up together. Shinji made friends both at school and at NERV but no one had ever challenged her central place in his life. Now both of her fellow pilots were trying to steal his attention away from her.

Kaworu's efforts were blatant and obvious (to her if not to Shinji) while Asuka's were more subtle. Both though wanted Shinji's attention and time. That made them both threats. Whenever she thought of Shinji smiling at either of them she felt something clutching at her heart. It was an ache that made her dread that she might be losing her special place with him.

_I wonder if this is jealousy. Does my feeling like this mean I have a jealous nature? _Human emotions were confusing so she didn't really know. What she did know was that no one was allowed to take Shinji from her. Commander Ikari had tried and she had taken action to prevent it.

She would do the same again if she needed to.

Inside Unit 02 Asuka was filled with anticipation. This was her chance to prove herself again and make everyone see her last battle had been an aberration. She needed to show them all that she really was the best. Piloting an EVA was what she was born for. She _couldn't _go into reserve. If she wasn't going to be on the front lines fighting to save humanity then what had all the sacrifices and hard work been for? She would **definitely **prove herself today and hear words of praise from Katsuragi-san.

And from Shiji.

XXX

It was sunset as the eighth Angel Sahaquiel appeared in the skies above Tokyo-3. Misato was just about to give the order to begin.

"Enemy trajectory changing!" Makoto called out.

"AT field is fluctuating!" Maya said right on top of him.

On the overhead screen a crack appeared in the black sphere, another appeared, and then another. Like an egg cracking the black ball's outer shell shattered and disintegrated. Out of it burst a pair of fiery wings, a head, claws, and a long blazing tail. In an instant sunset was transformed into midday as a vast fire filled the sky above them.

Everyone stared at the new shape the Angel had taken.

"Well we had a dragon so why not a Phoenix too?" Misato asked philosophically.

"Enemy Angel still continuing to descend," Makoto warned.

"Right," Misato answered and called out to her pilots. "All EVAs! Launch!"

The sixth battle began.


	25. Sixth Battle

Shinji stared up as the black ball shredded and a gigantic fiery bird took its place. "Whoa!" He muttered squinting up at it. A visor automatically dropped over his view screen to spare his eyes.

"All EVAs! Launch!" Misato's voice shouted over the communication link.

"Roger!" Shinji hit the release button and the cable detached as Unit 01 raced towards the heart of Tokyo-3. On a digital screen 5:00 appeared and began counting down.

Units 00 and 02 also released their cables and began racing after the descending Angel.

In Central Dogma the radars and sensors were coordinated by MAGI with the impact point being updated constantly.

"Shinji-kun!" Misato called out. "It's heading toward your sector!"

"I know! I know!" He cried as he ran as fast as possible to get into position in time.

"Damn it," Asuka muttered as she saw the Angel moving away form her.

"AAAWWWWAAAAAAKKK!" A screeching cry boomed out penetrating even to the depths of her entry plug.

As Asuka watched the Angel's mouth opened and it spat out balls of flame. They landed and entire city blocks were enveloped in fire and blow apart as the earth shook.

Over her com link she heard Shinji crying out in terror.

"Got in Himmel!" She screamed. "Hold on!" She pushed Unit 02 even harder and ran on.

XXX

The proximity alerts whined out as the balls of fire rocketed in. On his view screen all he could see was fire coming straight for him. He instinctively dodged to his right and only just avoided being hit. The fireball struck and exploded reducing steel and concrete to rubble in just seconds and pouring out liquid fire in all directions. Some of it splashed onto Unit 01's unprotected back.

"Aaaaaahhh!" Shinji howled. "I'm burning!"

All around him the city was exploding and being turned into a vision of Hell.

"Shinji-kun!" Misato called out to him. "You have to get up! You have to get out of there!" Misato looked at the Angel on the overhead. It was attacking Unit 01 deliberately. _Does it know? Does it understand what we're trying to do?_

"Shinji-kun," Rei's voice called out. "You have to move. If you stay where you are you're a sitting target. Please move Shinji-kun!" Her voice was pleading and filled with desperate concern. Shinji mattered to her more than her own life.

Through the haze of pain Rei's voice reached him. "Right," he called out and forced himself back to his feet. Unit 01 began running again through the burning city.

Up above him the Angel's wings spread out and shook.

XXX

"Angel's trajectory is changing!" Makato warned. "It's veering off!"

On the overhead the enormous Angel banked around like a bird in flight.

"Where is it headed?" Misato called out desperately. Only 4:10 remained.

"MAGI is updating and replotting," Maya told her.

For a few frustrating seconds they were forced to wait helplessly. Then a new impact point in sector B-3 came up.

"Rei! It's heading toward you now!" Misato called out.

"Understood," she replied calmly.

"Rate of descent has increased," Makato said. "Impact expected in thirty five seconds."

"AAAWAAAAKKK!" The Angel bellowed out like some prehistoric monster. It's mouth split open and spat out a dozen balls of fire.

XXX

"Deploying AT Field." Rei imagined building a wall in front of her and her EVA responded throwing up the protective barrier.

The buildings before Unit 02 were leveled by her AT Field but it was in place as a pair of the fireballs crashed into it. The energy barrier became a sheet of flame. Inside the entry plug Rei grunted at the force of the impact and at the heat she could feel through her connection to her EVA. All around her other balls of fire exploded and caused the ground to shake. She stumbled but managed to keep running. The internal clock hit 3:40. She thought she could make it.

XXX

It was nearly to the ground when it's wings again moved.

XXX

"It's banking again!" Makato informed them.

It was now getting near the ground.

"Where?" Misato asked desperately. "If it hit's the ground we're done!"

MAGI gathered the information and gave them an answer.

"Impact point in sector E-7!" Maya declared.

Misato looked at the computer screen. "Asuka! it's you!"

XXX

"I know!" Above her the sky seemed to be nothing but flame. The Angel was plummeting straight at her.

She brought her Eva to a crashing halt as she smashed through a series of buildings.

"AT Field deploy to maximum!"

All the remaining buildings were flattened as Unit 02's AT Field appeared above her just in time.

The fiery Angle crashed down and was halted… but only for a moment.

Her AT Field became a wall of fire as two blazing talons broke through. The Angel grabbed her about the forearms and the armor instantly began to bubble and melt.

"Yaaaaaaaaahhhh!" Asuka howled as she could feel the skin burning off of her arms and could _smell _her flesh cooking.

"Her sync rate has dropped to 40%!" Ritsuko told them.

"Asuka!" Misato called out to her. "You have to hold on! You can't let it get past you!" Misato's eyes looked at the timer 2:44 remained.

"Her AT Field is weakening!" Maya related.

"Sync rate down to 36%!" Ritsuko said.

"Asuka! Hold on! Shinji! Rei! You have to help her!"

"The pain! The pain! It's too much!" Asuka screamed. "PLEASE GOD SOMEONE HELP ME!"

"Asuka! I'm here!" Shinji shouted as Unit 01 ran up to her. "I'll help you!"

Shinji added his AT Field's strength to hers pushing the wall of fire back. With his prog knife in both hands he hacked through the wall.

"Misato-san! Where's the core? I don't see the core!"

"It's here," Ritsuko brought up a thermal image of the Angel. Where its neck met its body there was a section cooler than the rest.

"Shinji! It's at the base of the neck!" Misato told him. "Hurry! You have less than 90 seconds of power."

"The neck! Got it!" He stabbed his prog knife into the Angel's long neck and saw it writhe and twist in pain. Shinji's prog knife was turning red hot in his hands but he continued to stab it deeper slicing and hacking through.

The Angel's beak turned to bite down on him.

As it did so Unit 00 arrived and tore though another section of the burning wall. Without hesitation she grabbed the Angel about the head and held shut it's beak wrapping both arms about it and holding it to her chest. Rei bit down in pain as she felt her hands, arms and chest burning. "Shinji… hurry…"

"Shinji! Less than thirty seconds!" Misato watched the timer counting down.

"I know!" He panted. he hacked and hacked cutting open the neck.

The Angel struggled desperately to break free as Unit 00 held on.

"Twenty seconds Shinji!"

Both arms ripped down and suddenly he could see the red core there in front of him surrounded by torn and bloody flesh.

"Found it!" He cried exultantly ignoring the blistering pain from his hands.

"Ten seconds!"

"Yaaaaaahhh!" With a furious scream Shinji brought the white hot prog knife up above his head with both hands and stabbed down with all his might.

The tip of his knife cracked through and the blade was shoved in all the way in to the hilt.

The core broke in two.

XXX

The Angel burst and exploded in blood. It's fiery skin died away as first the EVAs and then the entire city were awash in its blood. A huge cross of energy marked it demise.

XXX

Misato and the rest of the command crew were staring at the now lifeless corpse of the Angel lying atop the three damaged and powerless EVAs. 0:00 flashed above them.

"Tha… thank you all for your help," Misato said in a shaky voice. _We pulled off another miracle, I wonder how many we have left and how many we're going to need. _"Send out the recovery units to collect the EVAs and free the pilots. Recovering Unit 02 takes priority." She got on the com link to them. "Asuka, Shinji, Rei you all did amazing work today. We couldn't have done this without all three of you."

XXX

In her EVA's darkened plug Asuka was weeping with relief. She reached out and touched her communication button. "Shinji? Rei?"

"Yes Asuka?" Shinji answered.

"What is it pilot Soryu?" Rei replied.

"Thank you for helping me," she said in a tear choked voice. Shinji, Rei, and the command crew listened to her as she wept. "I could never have done this alone."

"That's all right Asuka," Shinji told her comfortingly. "It's all right."


	26. Dance Partners

Asuka stared up at the tiled ceiling of her hospital room. Both her forearms were covered in bandages and she had an IV tube stuck in her. She felt fine though. It was strange, but having come out and admitted she had needed help and thanking Rei and Shinji she felt as if a weight had been lifted from her shoulders. She had always believed that admitting to any sort of weakness would destroy the respect others had always shown her. Instead…

XXX

**Earlier**

"I'm proud of you Asuka," Misato told her. "What you did was amazing and thanks to you we were able to stop the Angel and prevent Third impact."

Another time she would have thumped her chest with a loud, 'of course.' Instead she looked away, knowing all too well it hadn't just been her.

"You should thank Shinji and Rei too," she said in a small voice.

"I will," Misato said sounding pleased. "All three of you did great and it's thanks to all of you that we succeeded. I think there's something you should know Asuka. The Americans have decided to ship us Unit 03 without bothering with field tests. It should arrive here in two days."

Asuka looked at her startled. "So soon? But I thought I would have more time to prove myself." Even if she wasn't the best she didn't want to lose her place as an EVA pilot.

Major Katsuragi gave her a comforting smile. "You don't need to worry, you've already proven yourself Asuka. After the last battle I've decided that you, Shinji, and Rei will be the active pilots. Kaworu and Unit 03 will be placed in reserve. I have yet to see him in action, but no matter how talented he might be I prefer to rely on the three of you. You've all got combat experience and you've proven that you can work together as a team. From now on I place my faith in you three." She put a gentle hand on Asuka's shoulder. "Let's work together to save humanity."

Asuka nodded and was surprised when she felt hot tears on her cheek. "I… I'll do my best," was all she could say. She didn't understand why, but she was suddenly crying and unable to say anything more.

Misato made no comment as the young girl wept. She just put her arms around her and gave her a comforting hug. She understood better than most how hard it was to grow up alone, and Asuka had just done a lot of growing up.

XXX

Asuka was thinking about what to have for dinner when she got released when there was a knock on the door. It slowly opened and Shinji stepped inside followed by Rei. They were both dressed in their school uniforms and she noticed Shinji had bandages on his forearms while Rei had them on her hands. Shinji came up to her bed side while Rei hung back, looking on silently with a blank expression.

"How are you feeling Asuka?" Shinji asked.

"I'm fine," she told him and managed a slight grin. "They're letting me out of here in a couple hours."

"Really?" Shinji asked excitedly. "That's great!" In his excitement to know she was all right he put his arms about her and gave her a quick hug.

Asuka was not used to physical affection and this was her second hug of the afternoon. Whereas Misato's had been gentle and warm and lasted for a time, Shinji's was just a quick squeeze and release. No more than a way for him to show his happiness she was well.

Though it was over in an instant Asuka couldn't keep the color from rising to her cheeks. "Dummkopf! Of course I'm all right! As though one little battle could do me in." She tried to put heat in her voice but hadn't managed it.

Laughing to himself Shinji ran through the back of his hair. "I know, you're indestructible."

"Hmmph glad you understand baka Shinji."

He smiled at her. If she was already back to calling him an idiot she was probably just fine. "Oh, if they're letting you out of here I suppose I should give you this." He reached into his school back pack and produced a small cream colored envelope with gold lettering on it.

Asuka took the proffered item and opened it curiously. She was more than a bit surprised to find it was a wedding invitation.

"Lieutenant Obasa and Miss Mikomi Ami? Do I know them?"

"Probably not," Shinji told her. "Lieutenant Obasa is a part of the support staff of Section 4. He and his girlfriend decided to get married all of a sudden and they're sort of inviting everyone."

"A lot of people have been getting married lately," Rei said suddenly. Speaking her first words since arriving. "Shinji wants to go so we will both be attending."

"Well then I'll go too," Asuka said immediately. If Shinji was going then it would be worth the effort even if she didn't know anyone.

"Great," Shinji said. "In that case why don't the three of us go together?"

"If you want," Asuka said with an indifferent shrug. She deliberately kept from smiling. "It doesn't really matter to me but I don't mind and at least I'll be with people I actually know."

Shinji turned to look back at Rei who was still standing by the door. "You don't mind if Asuka comes with us do you Rei?"

"Why would I object?" She said neutrally.

Shinji automatically took that as agreement, not noticing she _hadn't _actually agreed.

Or said that she didn't mind.

XXX

"I want you to understand Kaworu that my decision in no way reflects negatively on you. You have done absolutely nothing wrong and from what I've seen in the simulations I think you'll be a fine EVA pilot."

"Just not good enough though it seems," he replied with an amused grin.

Misato was relieved at how well he was taking being placed in the reserve role. He was not at all angry and had accepted the news with seeming disinterest. "Don't think that this means you're not still important! We have a grand total of four EVAs and four EVA pilots. Anything can happen and there is no telling when you and your EVA will be needed. You'll continue to train alongside the others and be called in whenever an Angel appears. Active or reserve you are still vital."

"I understand," he told her. "I'll do whatever I can to help."

Misato nodded. He really was taking this as well as could be expected. "Unit 03 is expected to arrive here the day after tomorrow. We'll be conducting immediate field tests and will need you to act as pilot. I want to see just what you and your EVA can do."

Kaworu nodded in understanding. "I will try not to disappoint you."

XXX

"You look really pretty today Rei," Shinji told her once again as they were approaching Asuka's apartment. She was dressed in a simple light blue sundress.

"Thank you Shinji-kun," she answered with one of those small smiles that she gave only to him. Besides wearing a different outfit she had done nothing else out of the ordinary. It pleased her greatly that Shinji would still compliment her though he got to see her every single day.

When they got to Asuka's apartment Shinji pressed the buzzer and they heard muted chimes. The steel door slid open just a moment later and Asuka was standing there ready to go.

Shinji's mouth dropped open and his eyes went wide. Asuka had on a tight fitting red dress that showcased the top of her breasts as well as much of her legs. She had on high heels and a leather purse slung over one shoulder. Her hair had been straightened and combed out and her lips were a bright crimson that immediately caught the eye. The result was that she looked older than she was and easily would have passed for a High School age girl.

A very hot High School girl.

Smiling demurely she reached out one hand and gently pushed up his jaw. "Close your mouth baka Shinji, you look like a fish."

"Asuka you look amazing!" He gushed.

"Well of course I do," she replied easily. "I'm glad you noticed though, a girl does appreciate having her efforts acknowledged." She neatly slid one arm around his and came to his side. "Let's get going."

Shinji nodded dumbly and the two of them began to walk off arm in arm.

Rei stood there momentarily forgotten. Her eyes narrowed as she took in the scene of Shinji-kun and Asuka walking past her arm in arm.

They went a few steps when Shinji stopped and looked back at her. "Aren't you coming Rei?"

"Yes," she said in a vacant tone. She hurried up to him and deliberately took his other arm mimicking Asuka.

The red head smiled past Shinji at the other girl. The two girls locked gazes.

Shinji failed to notice and as he began to walk both girls held on to him and matched his steps.

XXX

The wedding was a western style ceremony with the bride dressed in a white wedding dress. Because of the rush the wedding itself was held in the same rented hall where the reception would be. Once it was completed and the happy couple made man and wife the cake was brought out and the food served. More importantly the open bar began handing out drinks.

"Please try not to get _too _drunk," Ritsuko chided. She had a white wine in hand while her friend was already on her second beer. "Remember we have a busy day tomorrow."

"You're not giving me any credit at all," Misato said unhappily as she downed her beer.

"The bar's been open less than ten minutes," Ritsuko noted dryly.

Misato got up from the table with a laugh. "I know, I want to make sure they don't run out." She headed back to the bar.

"Why do I even bother?" Ritsuko muttered to herself.

The blonde scientist let her eyes drift to the open space surrounded by tables where the newly married couple and a few others were dancing.

She felt a bitter resentment and sipped her wine. _She _would never have a wedding day. The man she loved had left her without so much as a word of goodbye and had not tried to contact her from whatever post he currently held. _He used me and tossed me aside, just like he did with my mother, just as I always knew he would. _It had always been a one sided love. Even though she had **known **he was manipulating her she couldn't help but listen to his soft words, his begging. Ikari Gendo might have been a soulless bastard but he knew how to make a woman feel like she was needed. To make her feel like she was irreplaceable and the most important thing in the world.

_Right up until you're not, _she thought resentfully. She stopped sipping and drank the wine down emptying the glass. _How can I be so smart in so many ways and so stupid when it comes to my own life?_ The alcohol gave her belly an abrupt warmth that she could feel begin to spread. She pushed herself away from the table and got to her feet. Maybe just this once Misato had the right idea.

She headed over to the bar.

XXX

"Hey baka Shinji, let's dance." Asuka said to him. The three of them were seated at a table where they had all had some wedding cake and soda.

Shinji looked nervous and put a finger to the collar of his shirt. "Ah, I'm not really very good at dancing."

"What's so difficult?" She asked waving a hand at all the couples on the dance floor. "Just move your feet a little and follow my lead."

"Isn't the man supposed to do the leading?" He asked.

"Just come on." She grabbed him by the hand and half led, half dragged him to the dance floor. "Now just put your hands on my hips and move along with me." She placed her own hands on his shoulders.

"Like… like this?" He asked uneasily. His eyes kept drifting towards her breasts and he was all too aware of just how close she was.

"See?" She said in a soft tone very different from her usual one. "It's not so hard now is it?"

"I guess not," he replied weakly.

Together the two of them danced to the music coming out of the sound machine, drifting in and out of the crowd on the floor. Slowly they relaxed and began to move more naturally together.

All the while Rei watched in silence.

XXX

"A beautiful woman like you should be on the dance floor," Kaji said as he approached the table where the two women were drinking.

Misato looked up at him and swiftly turned her head. "As if I'd dance with you."

Kaji gave her a wide grin. "Who said I was talking to you?" He smoothly offered his hand to a startled Ritsuko. "Care to dance with me pretty lady?"

With all the wine in her seeing Misato's look of shock (immediately followed by a look of rage) was too funny and she laughed out loud. "Oh why not? It's been a long time since a man asked me to dance." She accepted his hand and stood up. She gave her friend a knowing look. "You don't mind do you?"

"Why would I mind?" Misato said biting off each word.

"Then shall we?" Kaji delicately led her away under Misato's smoldering gaze.

XXX

"You know she's going to kill you for this right?" Ritsuko asked as they started to dance together.

"Yeah, probably," he acknowledged.

XXX

Shinji and Asuka danced for several songs before at last heading back to the table. Before they could sit Rei neatly intercepted them and took Shinji by the hand.

"Shinji-kun, I want to dance," Rei told him directly.

"You do?" he said in surprise. "But you never want to dance Rei."

"Today I do," she said and started to lead him right back out to the dance floor.

"Uh, okay." He went with her willingly enough.

XXX

Asuka sat down and watched them. She noticed that Rei let him set he pace and she was the one following his moves as they danced together. Asuka was slightly disappointed to have Shinji stolen away from her but was still happy that she had gotten to dance with him for as long as she did. Rei was obviously just copying her, the girl was too shy and introverted to do anything else.

She was sure that Shinji would realize that and like her best before too long.

"You two made a nice couple," a familiar and polite voice said to her.

Asuka frowned as Kaworu sat down in the empty seat next to her. "I didn't realize you were here."

"I like to be unobtrusive," he told her simply.

"It's more like you enjoy being creepy."

"That's a cruel thing to say Asuka-san," he chided lightly.

"Doesn't mean it's not true."

Like Asuka his eyes searched out Shinji and Rei as they moved rhythmically to the music. "You shouldn't make Rei jealous," he told her. "It can be dangerous."

Asuka snorted and rolled her eyes bit. "As though I'd be scared to fight a blank slate like her."

"She might surprise you," he said quietly.

"I'll take my chances."

He glanced over at her but did not comment.

Looking back at the happy couple he spoke. "You know I've never actually danced before."

"Forget it," she told him flatly.

"Actually, do you think it would be weird if I asked Shinji?" Asuka made a choking sound and he looked back at her. "Something wrong?"

"You really are gay aren't you?"

XXX

The current tune ended and a slow song began to play. Looking around Rei saw the couples draw close in response. Mimicking what she saw Rei pressed herself against Shinji and placed her head on his shoulder. He hesitated, but slowly slid his arms around her to hold her close. They hardly moved, instead they swayed in the same spot, holding each other tightly.

"Shinji-kun?"

"Yes Rei?"

"I don't like seeing you dance with other girls."

He looked down at her in surprise. Sensing that she turned her face to him.

"Please only dance with me from now on Shinji-kun."

There was an ache in her voice, a rare want, and Shinji instantly found himself nodding. "All right Rei, from now on I will only ever dance with you." He promised.

"Good," she said and shut her eyes. "I don't want to share you."

XXX

That night Kaworu returned to his room alone as usual. The wedding and especially the reception afterwards had been interesting. He hadn't actually asked Shinji to dance with him and was a little disappointed but thought it was for the best. Given Asuka's reaction he doubted Shinji would have agreed and it certainly would not have made Rei happy.

Going to his kitchen he got a glass of water. He then took out a very special blue capsule from his pocket. Opening it he dumped the contents into the water and stirred it before drinking it down.

"I suppose this will be painful, but there's no avoiding it."

He went to bed and wondered how long it would take for the product to have its effect.


	27. Test Pilot

BEEP

BEEP

BEEP

Misato opened a single blood shot eye to stare at her alarm clock. Red numbers flashed 6:00 at her in time with the offending screech.

BEEP

BEEP

BEEP

"That has to be the worst sound in the world," she muttered tiredly and shoved a blanket over her head. Her skull was breaking in half and her brains were threatening to ooze out of her ears. Even worse some heartless bastard had replaced her tongue with sand paper.

BEEP

BEEP

BEEP

She shut her eyes and wondered if anyone would notice if she didn't go into work.

"Yaaaaaaawwwk!"

She opened her eyes and stared out over the edge of her bed to find herself nose to beak with an irate penguin.

"Bad Penpen, let me sleep just five more minutes."

"Yaaawk! Yaaaawk!" He began flapping his wings irately and was jumping up from one webbed foot to the other.

"All right! All right! I'm up, I'm up!" She tossed aside the blankets and sat up in bed. She was rewarded for this with a sudden sharp hammering inside her head. "Oh I am never drinking again," she said as she rubbed her temples.

Penpen looked up at her balefully with his little eyes as if to say, 'I've heard that before. Now hurry up and make me breakfast.'

XXX

"Selfish bird," she muttered as she put down a bowl filled with fish. Penpen began to swallow them down as Misato made her way over to the fridge. Over the years she had created a special hangover remedy that was a combination of tomato juice, peepers, raw eggs, and some lemon. There was always a pitcher of it sitting in her fridge.

As she poured herself a tall glass of the pungent mix she decided she didn't need any breakfast. She'd grab a candy bar or something on the way to work. She was going to be busy all day and hoped the little bastard with the jackhammer would take a break some time before noon.

"I really am never going to drink again," she said after swallowing some of her remedy with a grimace.

Penpen stopped with a fish in his beak and glanced at her. He then shook his head and swallowed what was in his mouth.

"No one has any faith in me," she told the annoying penguin.

It was then the phone in her apartment rang. She wasn't late and so knew it could only be bad news.

"This is Major Katsuragi, what's gone wrong?" Achy and hung over she was in no mood to waste time with good manners. "Are we under attack?"

"No Major, nothing like that." Lieutenant Hyuga said. "There's been a problem with the tests scheduled for today."

"The flight delivering Unit 03 was scheduled to arrive in just a couple hours. Did something happen to it?"

"No Major," Lieutenant Hyuga informed her. "The flight is still inbound under escort, on schedule and reporting no difficulties."

There had actually been a short message about some odd cloud they had passed through over the Pacific, but that didn't seem important enough to mention.

"Then is Unit 03 having some sort of mechanical issue? Did the Americans forget to include the owner's manual?"

"Ah, no Major, there are no problems or issues with the EVA at this time."

"Then why did you call me?"

"I'm afraid there's a problem with the test pilot."

XXX

"Food poisoning?" Misato gasped still not believing it. She had rushed down to the hospital and was looking into the room where Kaworu had been admitted. He was lying on his back pale and sweaty, an IV stuck in is arm. She carefully shut the door so as not to disturb him. "How could this have happened?" She demanded.

"Frankly I don't know," Ritsuko told her with an unhappy look. "There have been no other cases reported. I've had a team sent to his quarters to check on any food he had stored there. Regardless of whether or not we find he source he has a particularly virulent strain. I'm afraid he's going to be incapacitated for at least two or three days."

"Oh this is wonderful, we finally get a fourth EVA and now we're down a pilot." Despite the throbbing she shook her head.

"Well look at it this way," Ritsuko told her. "With all the luck we've had fighting the Angels we were more than over due for some bad karma right?"

"I thought you didn't believe in karma," Misato pointed out. "Everything can be explained everything has some reason behind it."

"Well I don't believe in any of that but I know you do so I thought looking at things that way might help."

"It doesn't help a bit," she complained. "What are we going to do about the field tests?"

"What can you do?" Ritsuko shrugged. "He'll recover in a few days. Just put the trials off until then."

"No," Misato said sternly. "The next attack could come at any moment and who knows if we might need Unit 03? We don't have the luxury of time. We need to go ahead and test out this production model now before we have the UN screaming at us to put it in storage. We need to know it's strengths and weaknesses and how it compares to the other EVAs."

"Well, I suppose we could use the Dummy Plug on it. That way we can test both the EVA as well as the dummy system."

"We'll do that too," Misato agreed. Though she didn't like the idea of remote controlled EVAs it was still good to have a back up just in case. "We still need to test it using a pilot though."

"Well since the Fourth Child is unavailable who do you have in mind?" Ritsuko asked.

XXX

Though it was Saturday morning Asuka was already awake. She liked her routines and wasn't really one for sleeping in late. She had on an old sweatshirt and panties and was lying in front of the television with a bowl of cereal. As she munched on some milk and corn flakes she clicked away at the various channels looking for something to catch her interest.

Her mind was off remembering just how much fun it had been yesterday being with Shinji. The way he had blushed and stammered when he's first seen her had been adorable. Getting to dance with him and spending time outside of school or NERV had been a very different experience. In a weird way it had sort of felt like a first date. Even though Rei had been there it had still felt like one.

For just a few hours she had gotten to be just an ordinary girl hanging out with a boy she liked. Not an EVA pilot, not a genius prodigy, but just a regular girl at a wedding reception. It had felt good. It had felt easy. After all, when you were used to fighting fifty foot monsters how scary could dancing with a boy really be?

She recalled how nervously he had followed her steps at first. Before too long though he had started to relax and gain confidence. Really Shinji was an idiot a lot of the time and he was way too timid and polite. Yet he was also kind and really cared about others. From the very beginning he had tried to treat her as a friend not as a rival or fellow pilot. Even though he was hesitant and apprehensive she knew how brave he was. He wasn't brash or loud like she was or quietly confident like the blank slate was. He was always nervous, always fearful, he would admit out loud that he was afraid. But when the moment came he fought. No matter how frightened he might be, he fought.

In a way he might have been braver than she was. (Not that she would ever admit that to anyone.)

She also liked Rei and actually hoped they might become friends. The little blue haired girl was her opposite in a lot of ways and where Shinji was concerned they were open rivals. Yet the girl was every bit as brave as she was. The fact Rei had had the nerve to actually slap her and issue a warning had won Asuka's secret admiration; it was just the sort of thing she might do.

The most important thing though was that they were EVA pilots too. In the whole world they were the only people who might really truly _understand _what it was like for her. She imagined the three of them might become really close.

Kaworu though still just creeped her out. Seriously! He was sitting next to a sexy red head girl and he asks if he should try and dance with Shinji? A slight shiver ran through her. She was pretty open minded but some things were just plain wrong.

She was still flipping through channels when her cell phone rang. She picked it up and answered with a flick of her wrist. "Bitte?" She asked automatically.

"Hello Asuka," Misato's voice was on the line.

"Are we under attack?" Asuka asked immediately.

"No, no, nothing like that," Misato quickly reassured her. "I'm calling to beg you for a favor."

Katsuragi quickly explained the situation.

"I realize this is your off day but these tests are important and I was wondering if you would be willing to help out?" Misato asked pleadingly. "They're going to last most of the day but I really don't want to put them off."

"Why are you calling me?" Asuka questioned just a little suspiciously. "Did you already talk to Shinji? He has the best sync rates so he would be your first choice, right?"

"Actually I haven't called him yet," Misato confessed. "He told me the other day that he and Rei were planning to have a picnic lunch today. I wanted to call you first incase you didn't have any plans and wouldn't mind piloting for us."

"So you didn't want to ruin their picnic, eh Misato-san?" Asuka couldn't keep from sounding amused. "That's unexpectedly thoughtful of you."

"What do you mean?" Misato sounded slightly offended. "I'm always trying to watch out for you kids. When the situation allows."

Asuka laughed softly. "I suppose that you are, please don't take any offense."

"If you have plans I can call Shinji and Rei and see if one of them can do it."

"No I don't have any plans," Asuka told her. "You don't need to bother them, I'll do it. Piloting a new EVA sounds more interesting than just doing nothing all day any way." If Shinji and Rei had something already planned there was no reason to ruin both their days.

"Arigato Asuka," Misato said relieved. "You really are a good person to do this for them."

"What are you talking about? I just don't have anything better to do today."

"Of course," Misato sounded amused.

"Just tell me what time I have to be ready by," Asuka grumbled.

XXX

Rei was humming to herself as she packed the picnic basket with the food Shinji had made for them. She hadn't used to do that. It was a habit she had picked up from Shinji. The simple thought of spending time with Shinji-kun by the lake made her happy. The sun was out and there was not a cloud in the sky. She didn't know how many more days like this she would have with Shinji-kun, but she didn't think there would be many. It made her time with him even more precious to her.

"Are you ready to go Rei? Our ride is downstairs waiting."

She finished packing and closed he wicker basket. "I'm ready Shinji-kun."

Shinji took the basket with both hands and they headed out.

She thought it would be a wonderful day.

XXX

Twenty miles outside of Tokyo-3 the military had set up a wide perimeter around one of NERVs many test sites. It was protocol that all field tests had to be conducted a minimum of twenty miles form the geofront. This was to guard against any unexpected disasters or catastrophic failures.

Misato and Ritsuko were already in place to oversee things as Asuka rode the elevator up to where she would be inserted into the entry plug. On the way up she got a clear view of the EVA she would be piloting. It was mostly black with red and white trim. It was a little bigger than her EVA with two flat eyes and a jaw line like Unit 01's. There were massive shoulder guards and the whole Unit looked bulkier than any of its predecessor's. She wondered if it might be clumsier or harder to handle. It certainly looked like it had more brute strength.

Looking at it the main impression she got was one of menace.

"Well I suppose an EVA should look scary," she said to herself.

When the elevator reached the top gang plank it thudded to a stop and the screen door slid open. In her red plug suit Asuka headed to the entry plug. She hoped the tests today would at least be interesting.


	28. Seventh Battle

The control room of the Matsuhiro test site was filled with NERV staff going over read outs and preparing for the many tests that would be run today. As usual Ritsuko was overseeing everything with a cigarette in her mouth and her white lab coat on.

"The preliminary readings all look good," she said sounding pleased. "Flood the entry plug."

XXX

Asuka 'breathed' in the LCL. The same familiar scent was there, being in a different EVA made no difference. It was a sweet and comforting aroma that put her at ease. She wondered if always being immersed in LCL caused its unique smell to rub off on you. She'd begun to notice that Shinji, Rei, and even Kaworu smelled a little like it.

_I probably do too and just can't notice it on myself._

The thought actually made her smile a little; it was one more special connection between them.

"How are you feeling Asuka?" Misato's voice came in over the com line. "Any problems?"

"I'm just fine Misato-san, let's go ahead and get started."

XXX

Misato turned to her friend with a satisfied grin. "We'll start with basic motor functions first and see how quickly and deftly our new EVA can move."

Ritsuko simply nodded.

"Pilot sync rate at 52.1%." A technician called out.

"That's a little low but still acceptable," Ritsuko noted. "Especially given she is in a different EVA."

"Plug sensors are clear," a different technician said. "Readings within tolerable range."

"Initiate second stage connection," Ritsuko ordered.

"Initiating second stage."

That was when the screens turned red with flashing alerts and an alarm began to sound.

XXX

Within the Entry Plug Asuka knew immediately that something was very, very wrong. The controls vanished and it suddenly seemed as if she was swimming in a pool of blood. She could hear childlike laughter ringing in her ears.

Some unknown force grabbed a hold of her and began to drag her down toward a black field of stars.

"Gott im Himmel!"

XXX

"Plug depth at over 100, mental contamination is critical!" A lieutenant shouted.

"What happened?" Misato asked. Everything had been going perfectly.

"I don't know," Ritsuko told her as she stared at the read outs. "All the readings have red lined. Eject the plug! Abort the test! Emergency shut down, now!"

"EVA is refusing shutdown. Plug ejection system failure."

"Reading alternate power source from the EVA."

Within its cage Unit 03 roared and tore free of its restraints.

"It can't be!" Misato said in horror. "It's an Angel!"

XXX

A huge explosion shook the ground and sent fire into the sky over Matsuhiro.

XXX

"There are a lot fewer people here than before," Rei noted.

They had already eaten and were now simply relaxing. Shinji was lying with his head resting in Rei's lap and she was slowly running her fingers through his hair. At her words he opened his eyes and glanced towards the lake. There were still fishermen here looking to catch a meal, but as she's said there were a lot less of them. Shinji thought there might have been a fifth, if that, of the number that had used to come out here.

"Yeah," Shinji agreed. "Everyone who isn't a part of the military or NERV is leaving Tokyo 3. If it keeps going like this the whole city will be a ghost town soon."

"That's rather sad," she said. Like him she had grown up here. Tokyo 3 was home, or as much home as any place could be to her.

"I agree, but what can you do? Who wants to live in a place that's always under attack?"

"It won't always be this way," she said quietly. "The battles will come to an end and everything will change."

Shinji noticed that the idea of an end to the attacks didn't please her. On the contrary, it only appeared to sadden her. "Don't you want that to happen Rei? Don't you want the Angels to stop attacking us?"

His head in her lap she looked down into his eyes. One hand gently stroked his cheek.

"All I want Shinji-kun," she told him. "Is to be with you. Nothing else matters to me."

She'd said those words to him many times before, but today there was an odd intensity to them.

"Why wouldn't we still be together? When the Angels stop things will go back to the way they were."

"No Shinji," she said sounding absolutely certain. "Things can never go back. Everything is going to change."

He wanted to know what she meant by that. Before he could ask though there was a loud shout from one of the two men who had brought them out here. He sat up and saw one of the men in dark suits running up to them.

Shinji and Rei both understood what that meant.

"It was such a beautiful day too," Rei said.

XXX

Shinji and Rei were rushed to NERV headquarters and quickly gotten ready. Unlike most of their battles they were not going to fight inside Tokyo 3 this time. Almost as soon as they were in their EVAs they were sent out. A battle line with tanks, artillery, and mobile rockets had been set up a couple miles north of the city and they were sent to join it. On the way they were given bits and pieces of information about what had happened. This was not a deliberate attempt to deceive them but reflected NERV's own lack of intel.

The situation was confused.

There had been a huge explosion at the Matsuhiro test site and all communications lost. Rescue and recovery teams were headed there but at the moment there was just no knowing how severe the damage had been or what the casualty rate was. There was an object approaching which was presumed hostile but there were no details as yet.

Within Central Dogma Commander Fuyutsuki was seated calmly listening to the reports. He lacked Gendo's icy self certainty or Misato's loud and contagious confidence. What he did have in abundance though was a calm that no disaster could shake. Though hardly an inspirational figure the sight of him helped keep the others around him composed.

Out in the field both Units 00 and 01 had rifles at the ready. They were waiting for the object to come into view. As usual Rei was stoic and had no difficulty waiting for the enemy's arrival. Also as usual Shinji was nervous. His fingers twitched and he wished he knew more of what had happened.

"What about Misato and Ritsuko? Are they okay? What about Asuka?" Shinji asked yet again.

"Shinji we just don't know," Lieutenant Hyuga told him. "Rescue teams are on the way and as soon as we know you'll know I promise. Right now you need to concentrate on your mission though."

"How are we going to fight without Misato here to direct things?"

"Don't worry Shinji," Lieutenant Maya told him. "The Commander will run things."

"Unidentified object closing, now within one thousand yards." Shigeru announced.

On the overhead they could all see as the enemy came lumbering down the road, at last coming into view. Its massive arms swinging beside its body it moved steadily; making no effort to hurry. It approached the battle line at its own leisurely pace.

"So, it's just as I feared," Fuyutsuki said.

In his EVA Shinji felt his stomach sicken. "That… that's the enemy? But it's an EVA isn't it?"

"Send out deactivation signal. Emergency plug ejection." Fuyutsuki ordered.

"Unit refuses to recognize deactivation signal or plug ejection code." Hyuga stated.

"Sensors confirm object as Blood Type Blue." Shigeru said.

"Very well then," Fuyutsuki stated calmly. "EVA Unit 03 no longer exists. Target is hereby designated the ninth Angel Bardiel. All military units open fire. EVA Units 00 and 01 attack and eliminate the target."

Immediately the tanks, artillery, and mobile rockets opened up. The Angel's AT Field easily blocked their efforts as it continued it's unhurried pace, not even noticing the conventional assault.

"What? But Asuka's still inside isn't she?" Shinji cried. His hands shook as he stared at the approaching Angel.

"Understood," Rei answered. She brought her rifle up to her shoulder and opened fire.

"Rei! What are you doing?" Shinji screamed at her. "Asuka's in there!"

"I know that Shinji," she replied in a stoic unaffected voice. "Her sacrifice is regrettable." Rei did not hesitate and blazed away. Her bullets were halted by the enemy AT field just like the shells and rockets.

"Rei…" Shinji didn't know what to say or what to think. Asuka was their _friend. _

"Shinji," Commander Fuyutsuki's voice came in over the line. "I don't want to hurt Asuka either, but there's no choice. If the Angel is not defeated it will initiate Third Impact. We must prevent that no matter what the cost."

"But if I attack I might kill her!" Shinji howled. "How can you ask me to do that?" Just yesterday they'd danced together. He's held her close, listened to her laugh and gotten to see her smile at him. For the first time she'd shown him a kinder gentler side. Even if she came off as arrogant and pushy at times she was actually a kind person. He couldn't bare the thought of hurting Asuka; of maybe killing her.

"If you do nothing Shinji she and everyone else will die anyway." Fuyutsuki told him. "Right now her only hope is for you to defeat the Angel and then extract her."

"I can't! I can't do it!" Looking down the gun sights he could not bring himself to fire even as the enemy drew closer.

In the meantime Rei had used up her ammunition, reloaded and now emptied a second clip. The enemy was now within 300 yards of them.

Without warning the Angel suddenly leapt high into the air just as Unit 00 was loading a third clip. It crashed down onto Rei's EVA, pinning it's arms with its knees. It wrapped both hands around Unit 00's neck and began to squeeze.

Over the open line he could hear the sound of Rei choking. He knew she would be experiencing it just as if someone really were strangling her.

"Shinji what are you doing?" A horrified Maya cried. "Help her!"

It was the sound of Rei in pain, of knowing she was being hurt and that she would be killed if he did nothing. It was that.

"DAMN IT!" He screamed and brought his rifle up and squeezed the trigger. Bullets larger that automobiles fired at point blank range only to be halted by the AT Field. The Angel ignored the fire and continued to choke the helpless EVA beneath it.

Shinji threw aside the useless rifle and pulled out his prog knife.

"Yaaaaaaahhh!" With a primal scream he ran at the enemy. With both hands wrapped around Unit 00's neck the Angel was wide open. Shinji slammed the knife deep into its ribs, burying it all the way up to the hilt.

The Angel cried out in pain as blood gushed from it's wound.

In a mindless fury Shinji wrenched the blood covered knife out and began stabbing it again and again and again. Jamming the blade into the Angel's chest and neck, each new wound bringing a fresh torrent of blood.

As Shinji savagely attacked it Unit 00 held onto its wrists, giving the Angel no chance to escape or defend itself.

What followed was not a battle. It was simple murder. Together the two of them slowly butchered the enemy Angel.

In Central Dogma Fuyutsuki and the staff watched in silence as Shinji hacked open the enemy. Maya was sickened and covered her eyes unable to stand it. The others simply looked on without comment. It was brutal and horrible; but such was the face of war.

XXX

"That's enough Shinji. It's dead."

Rei's calm voice brought him back.

Shinji found himself standing over the ruined corpse of EVA Unit 03. It, his own EVA, Unit 00, and the ground all around them was drenched in blood. Seeing what he had done he felt sickened and disgusted. He let the prog knife slip form his hand and turned away.

All around them were helicopters bringing in rescue and recovery teams. Rei picked up the discarded prog knife and rolled the lifeless corpse onto its chest. She neatly cut open the back and extracted the entry plug.

It was undamaged.

Whether or not the pilot was still alive she had no way of telling. She carefully set the plug down where the newly arrived personnel could easily get to it.

Nearby in an empty rice patty Unit 01 was seated on the ground, knees drawn up to its chest. She could hear Shinji crying.

Walking up to him she had her EVA put its arms around him.


	29. A good dream

Asuka lay in a hospital bed under heavy guard. Her eyes were open and were staring up blankly at the ceiling. Monitors were hooked up to her and she was being fed intravenously. Since being rescued three days ago she's made no sound and had failed to respond to any stimulus. Though there was no obvious injury she was in a comatose state.

Ritsuko was there along with Maya checking up on her. Ritsuko still had some bandages wrapped around her forehead; she and the others in the control room had been lucky. Buried under steel and concrete it had survived the initial explosion and afterwards the Angel had left, more interested in attacking the geofront than in finishing off the survivors at the test site.

"Amazing," Ritsuko murmured and lit a cigarette.

"Ah, sempai?" Maya said. "You're not supposed to smoke in here."

"It's all right," Ritsuko said waving it off. "I'm sure Asuka won't tell on me." She was busy studying the results of one of the monitors. "Her brain wave patterns don't show any delta waves. Though her body appears unresponsive her mind is incredibly active."

"Then why is she like this?" Maya asked.

"Who knows? While trapped inside EVA 03 she appears to have been mentally submerged with the Angel." Ritsuko looked from the monitor read out to the girl lying in the hospital bed. "She is the only human being to have ever been mentally linked to an extra terrestrial being. Who can even guess how that would affect the human consciousness? Also as she was hooked up to the nerve net she likely experienced being stabbed multiple times and may have even experienced the Angel's death as well. That level of trauma might have been too much for her mind to accept. It's even possible that some part of the Angel's memories or thought patterns merged with her own. Even if she wakes she may not be Asuka any more, she might be part Angel now."

Maya looked at the helpless girl worriedly. "They're not going to terminate her are they?"

"Don't be ridiculous," Ritsuko said stamping out her cigarette. "She is far too valuable a test subject for that."

XXX

"Thank you," Kaworu said as he received his change and took the flowers he'd just paid for. As he exited the hospital gift shop someone was standing outside waiting for him.

"A little something for a girl?"

The silver haired boy nodded his head politely. "Hello Kaji-san what a pleasant surprise to see you here. Are you visiting someone?"

"I came down here to see you actually."

"How kind of you, especially since we are not really that close."

"Oh think nothing of it," Kaji said grandly. "I am _very _interested in you."

"That's nice," Kaworu replied.

"So just who are the flowers for? Asuka?"

"Shinji-kun, I've heard he hasn't been feeling well and I thought I would try to cheer him up."

"You really have care a lot about Shinji don't you?" Kaji chuckled softly, teasingly. "Some people might even think you are obsessed with him."

"He is a fellow EVA pilot and a good friend. Isn't it only natural that I worry about him?"

"The same could be said of Rei and Asuka, yet you refer to both of them as 'san' the same way you do everyone else. I've noticed that only Shinji gets 'kun' added to his name. Why is that?"

Kaworu shrugged. "No reason really, I just feel more comfortable around him I suppose."

"Is that all?"

An amused glint filled Kaworu's eyes. "What more could there possibly be Kaji-san?"

Kaji looked at him and pursed his lips. "You know you're a very lucky young man," he said deftly changing the subject. "You were scheduled to pilot Unit 03. If you hadn't suddenly some down with food poisoning it would have been you in there rather than Asuka."

"Yes, I suppose I was lucky, though I certainly didn't think so at the time."

"You know it's a funny thing," Kaji said sounding completely nonchalant. "The day you got sick you only ate at one of the base cafeterias, at the wedding reception, and had a sandwich at home. That's right isn't it?"

"You're very well informed," Kaworu noted. "Yes that's right."

"Well the medical staff tested everything in your apartment and found no sign of spoilage. While hundreds of other people ate at the same locations you did and there were no other cases. If you were poisoned at either the cafeteria or the reception there should have been multiple cases. it's almost unheard of for there to be only one in a situation like that."

"Are you suggesting I only pretended to be sick?" Kaworu shook his head. "You can check with Akagi-san or the medical staff. I really was ill, I only just now recovered enough to be released."

"Oh I don't doubt you had food poisoning," Kaji clarified. "I'm just saying the timing was rather convenient."

"You've obviously never had food poisoning. I've been as sick as a dog for the past three days. Why would I do that to myself deliberately?"

"To avoid Asuka's fate."

Kaworu's smile slowly widened on his face. "You're suggesting I knew that Unit 03 was going to be compromised. How could I possibly have known that?" He laughed. "Do I look like an Angel to you?"

"I'm just making an observation."

"You make a great many observations Kaji-san," Kaworu noted. "I wonder if that might get you into trouble some day."

Kaji smiled down at him. "I think I can handle myself with you."

"Oh I'm not the one you need to worry about Kaji-san," Kaworu assured him. "I find you entertaining. There are other people though who don't have my good nature. They're the ones you have to watch out for."

"Is that supposed to be a threat?"

"It's just an observation," Kaworu told him in a friendly way.

XXX

The electronic door slid open and Rei entered dressed in her school uniform.

"I'm back Shinji-kun," she called out.

She waited but here was no response.

She took her shoes off and continued, talking loudly enough for her voice to carry through the entire apartment.

"Everyone at school asked if you were all right and when you were coming back. Fuka-san told everyone he was moving away and that today was his last day, I'm not sure who's going to teach math now. There are rumors the school is going to be closed down. There's nothing official yet though and the teachers haven't said anything."

She waited but there was still no reply.

"Major Katsuragi asked how you were doing. I think she is very worried about you. Her arm is in a cast and she wants you to sign it. The Commander said you could stay out one more day but after that you would have to come in and begin training again. Kaworu has finally been released and he wants the three of us to train as a unit."

She opened the bedroom door and stepped inside. The lights were off and Shinji was curled up on the bed just as he had been when she'd left for school. He was facing the far wall and did not look at her.

"What do you want to eat?" She asked him.

"I'm not hungry," he told her without moving.

"You have to eat Shinji."

He said nothing.

Without comment she climbed onto the bed and curled up next to him. She pressed herself against his back and rested her head on his shoulder and wrapped her slender arms around his chest. He was warm.

They lay there together for awhile in silence. Rei wanted to help him but didn't know what words to say. All she could do was hold him and share her body's warmth with him. It was hard for her to see him like this, to see him in pain and not be able to do anything about it.

Being human was hard. Their bodies were so weak and fragile and seemed made to feel suffering. Physical pains, emotional pains, loneliness, regret… how could they stand it? How did they not go mad from all they had to endure?

She wondered if the best thing she could do for humanity was to rid it of this ability to suffer.

"I did that to her," Shinji suddenly spoke in a bare whisper. "I did that to her."

"She's alive Shinji. She's alive because of what you did." They'd been told Asuka had survived but was in a catatonic state. No one knew if she would fully recover, but NERV was acting on the assumption she would never again pilot.

"I did that to her," he said in a broken voice. "She would have felt it. Every stab, it would have felt like I was stabbing her over and over. I did that to her."

"There was no choice Shinji. We both did what we had to. What happened to Asuka was unfortunate but unavoidable. She was just one more casualty."

At last Shinji rolled over to face her. His eyes were red but there were no more tears. She wondered if had used them all up and just didn't have any left to cry.

"Why did this have to happen to Asuka? She didn't deserve it. Neither did Toji or Kensuke."

"They were casualties of war," Rei told him. "The battles cause death, there's nothing you or I can do to alter that. We can't save everyone Shinji, we can only fight to save what we can."

"What's it all for Rei?" He asked her sounding so lost, so empty. "We have to fight, but why? Even if we win, even if we defeat the Angels what will happen then? Misato told me about the Vatican Treaty. Even while we're fighting for survival people are afraid of us being too strong, different countries are still just looking out for themselves. Will there be peace if we win? Or will there just be more war? I am so tired of this Rei, of fighting and destroying everything. I am so sick of war. If I could, if I had the power, I would put an end to war forever."

Rei nodded her head. "That's a good dream Shinji-kun, and if I could I would make it come true for you."

They were lying on the bed facing each other, their heads resting on a pillow. Slowly, ever so slowly, Rei leaned forward to place a feather soft kiss on his lips.

"Rei…"

"Let me comfort you Shinji-kun," she whispered and gently caressed his face. "Please, let me give you comfort. Let me share my love with you."

She placed another kiss on his lips and felt Shinji return it. His hands cradled her hips as he shifted himself over her, she gladly accepted his weight pressing down upon her. Nothing was as enjoyable as the feel of his body pushing down on hers. When they kissed again, it was with a simmering passion, feelings expressed with slow, gentle need. There was something to be said about enjoying patient, unhurried lovemaking. They took each other's clothes off and slipped into the familiar pattern of sharing each other's soul and emotions in this most basic and physical way. This was their love, their special connection.

"I love you," Shinji said looking down at her with such affection and tenderness that it made her heart ache.

"I love you too Shinji-kun."

XXX

As they made slow leisurely love Rei wondered if this was why humanity was able to survive despite all the hardships. This feeling of love that defeated everything else and made all the pain of life bearable. To be with Shinji forever, to always have this feeling in her heart, for that she knew she could do anything at all.

Even bring humanity to its final end.


	30. Some things are worth dying for

Kaji was seated in the Commander's private office. On the table before him was an honest to goodness china tea set. The finely crafted and delicate cups and saucers were a rare sight these days and he guessed it came form the time before Second Impact. These days no one had time to make such beautiful things. Everything was mass produced. Everything was common and had a similar look to it. It really did belong to another age.

_Like Fuyutsuki, _Kaji thought.

"You know I can't remember the last time I actually sat down to have tea." Kaji remarked. "I think I'd be more comfortable with just some coffee or even a beer."

"Please indulge an old man," Fuyutsuki told him. "It reminds me of more civilized times." The tea was hot and he breathed in it a bit before sipping from his cup. "You would have been a child when Second Impact took place. How much do you remember of the world back then?"

"I remember plenty," Kaji said leaning back kin his chair. He made no effort to take any tea for himself. "My parents were still alive then and we were living in a large house in Yokahama before it was flooded."

"Do you remember the seasons? Back then Japan actually had different weather instead of this long endless summer. So you remember winter? Snow?"

"It never snowed much in Yokahama," Kaji informed him. "I do remember going on a skiing trip with my family once. The world was white as far as the eye could see."

Fuyutsuki nodded his head sadly. "I miss snow and the winter time. Outside of the arctic and the tops of the highest mountains it no longer exists here on Earth. When I think of what we did to our home it fills me with shame and sorrow. Second Impact was the result of our pride you know. It was a sin as great as eating the apple."

"Is that why you joined NERV?" Kaji asked. "To help redeem that sin?"

"No," Fuyutsuki said setting his cup down on its saucer. "I did it to try and save humanity from what was coming. And I will also admit to more selfish reasons. When Gendo showed me the EVA prototype and told me what he was planning I just couldn't walk away. It was obviously a project that would change the world like the Manhattan project or the Apollo space missions. I wanted to be a part of that."

"And years later here you are the man in charge of defeating the Angels."

"Yes," Fuyutsuki nodded. "Quite an accomplishment for an old professor."

"Aren't you happy about it?" Kaji inquired.

"Truthfully? No, I'm not. I never wanted the responsibility. Trying to help Gendo achieve his goals was quite enough for me."

"What did happen to Commander Ikari?" Kaji asked lightly. "There's no trace of him anywhere in SEELE or NERV. It's as though he ahs just disappeared."

"You're asking more dangerous questions Kaji," Fuyutsuki told him neutrally.

"It's what I'm good at," he said with an amused shrug. "It's why you asked me for my help."

"And do you have the information?" Fuyutsuki asked.

In reply Kaji took out a miniature CD on a case and placed it in the table.

"Design specs for EVA Units 6-13. They're actually being mass produced on the same design so there's only one set of schematics. I trust that will satisfy you?"

Fuyutsuki simply looked at the small CD without reaching for it. "How did you get this?" He asked quietly.

"Does it matter?"

"No, I suppose not." He reached down and took the case neatly depositing it in his pocket.

"And your part of our bargain?" Kaji asked politely.

From a different pocket Fuyutsuki produced a small crystal cylinder, a data core. He placed it down on the table. "All details on the Human Instrumentality Project including the contents of Terminal Dogma."

Kaji snatched up the crystal with no hesitation.

"You know they will kill you for this Kaji," Fuyutsuki told him quietly.

"I know," Kaji replied without concern as he slipped the data core into a safe place. "Some things are worth dying for."

XXX

Misato was in the control room overlooking the sync tests with the three remaining pilots. For once Rei was leading the pack with a sync rate of 62.4%. Shinji was well below his usual standards with 55.7%. Kaworu was at 45.1%.

"This is not good," she muttered unhappily. She wasn't worried about Shinji. She had enough faith in him to believe he would recover before too long.

"It's not so bad," Lieutenant Mikoto told her. "Their sync rates are still high enough to operate all their EVAs."

Misato nodded, that was true, but not completely accurate. "Unit 02 has already frozen up a couple of times. What if that happens in combat?"

"Kaworu has never piloted EVA Unit 02 before, so this is actually very good for a first attempt." Mikoto insisted on seeing the bright side. "I'm sure he'll improve the more he works with it."

"Hopefully," Misato said.

XXX

Inside Unit 02 Kaworu closed his eyes and struggled to maintain control over his EVA.

_You resent me don't you? _He thought. _What happened to Asuka-san was not my doing. It was the role she was always meant to play._

All around him he felt the EVA shudder and come to a halt.

Kaworu grinned as none of the instruments or controls would respond. "Oh dear, you're taking this rather personally aren't you?"

XXX

"Sync rate on Unit 02 has dropped to zero," Mikoto announced. "EVA Unit 02 is refusing to reactivate. It is completely frozen."

"What the hell?" Misato shouted. "It was working fine just a minute ago! How did it drop all the way to zero that quickly?"

"Cause is unknown, I show no system malfunctions. Unit 02 is simply refusing to sync with the pilot."

Misato wished Ritsuko was there with her. Unfortunately all her time lately was being absorbed with overlooking Asuka. "Reinitialize the start up program. Kaworu, what happened just now?"

"I have no idea Katsuragi-san," the fourth child told her. "I guess EVA 02 just doesn't like me very much."

"Unit 02 is refusing reinitialization, sync rate remains at zero. Unit 02 remains unresponsive," Lieutenant Mikoto told her.

"Great, just great," she muttered. "Shinji finally comes back and now this. I just pray the next attack is one we can handle with just two EVAs." When she spoke on the general circuit to all three pilots her voice was its normal exuberant self. "Great job everyone, you all did just great! We'll knock off a little early today. Prepare for extraction, we'll pick up again tomorrow."

She cut off communications and let out a weary sigh. "Well at least Shinji and Rei seem to be doing all right, that's something."

"Rough day?" A voice purred in her ear making her jump. She turned around to find Kaji standing there with an amused smirk on his face.

"What are you doing here?" She growled. "This is a restricted area!"

In response he tapped his badge. "Triple A level clearance, remember?"

She crossed her arms and sent him a hard look. "Just what do you want? I'm busy right now."

"I was just wondering if you could make time to have lunch with me tomorrow." He smiled at her pouring on his charm.

"I'm busy," she told him.

"Oh that's a shame," Kaji looked momentarily disappointed. "I guess I'll just have to ask Ritsuko then."

"I doubt she'll be available," Misato said coolly. "She's very busy as well."

"I see… I wonder if that cute little Lieutenant Maya might be free then."

"I'll have lunch with you," Misato answered. "But you're paying and I am having a LOT of beer."

Kaji laughed. "Just like old times."

Misato growled at him which only made him laugh harder.

XXX

That night Kaji shuttered his windows, bolted his door, and did an electronic sweep for listening devices. He then sat down and inserted the data core into his computers RAD annex. A data core could hold more information than could be stored on a thousand disks. And while this core was nowhere near full he quickly saw there was far more information on it than he could possibly read even staying up all night. He settled for reading the overviews and the primary reports, even those took hours.

Eventually though he was able to discover the truth behind the Human Instrumentality Project and how what was stored down in Terminal Dogma related to it. Even for a man long since immersed in secrets and hidden agendas he was shocked.

The simple magnitude of what SEELE was planning took his breath away. The twelve men who made up the committee had taken it upon themselves to decide the fate of the entire human race.

With unimaginable arrogance they were playing god.

"Yeah," he said quietly to himself in his darkened bedroom. "Some things are worth dying for."


	31. The most powerful thing in the world

Going over the information Kaji had brought him Fuyutsuki found himself displeased by a great many things.

To begin with these EVAs were all being built with S2 engines, the same power source the Angels used. They would not be limited by cables or internal batteries. They would in effect have unlimited operational endurance and movement.

On the face of it that was a _good _thing. The need to rely on easily severed cables or batteries with limited time had always been a major weakness. However what it truly meant was that these new EVAs would be much more effective _offensive _weapons. The current EVAs were by necessity defensive weapons, their limitations made it unavoidable. That was not really an issue though as their sole purpose was to protect the contents of Terminal Dogma. These new EVAs were different. Along with their S2 engines they also had independent flight ability. They could go anywhere and fight for as long as needed. They were made to attack.

Why?

Since they already knew the Angles would come here why had they been designed that way? There was no need to track down and seek out the enemy when the enemy had no choice but to come to you. Why bother building an EVA with flight abilities then? Were these new EVAs _really _meant to fight the Angels? Or was there a different target in mind? SEELE had insisted that the S2 engines were impossible to safely install into an EVA yet appeared to have already managed it. That being the case why not share that technology with the EVAs they already had? Why keep it secret from NERV? Why have EVA Units 00, 01, and 02 operate with an obsolete power source when there was a better option? It was as thought they _wanted _those EVAs to have that weakness.

Another thing that worried him was the production schedule. SEELE had informed him the first of the new EVAs would not be on line for at least six months. Fuyutsuki had immediately questioned the reason for the immense cost of building the new models when they were unlikely to have any Angels to fight by that point. According to this though all eight models would be ready for operation within 60 days. SEELE was deliberately deceiving him about when they would become available.

The EVAs were not designed to be piloted. They were instead being built to run on the Dummy Plug system. In a way that was logical. There simply weren't enough pilots to go around. If they were all meant to be used at once there was no option but to use the Dummy Plug. Yet the idea of remote control EVAs under SEELE's command made him… nervous.

"Who is the real enemy?" Fuyutsuki asked aloud.

XXX

Kaji had brought her to a little Thai restaurant he had never been to before. That was a security measure to guarantee no one would be listening to them as they ate. He deliberately took a seat that gave him a clear view of the door so that he could track any new arrivals. So long as no one sat too close it was fairly safe for them to talk.

He looked at the girl sitting across from him and couldn't help but smile as she sucked down another beer. The years since college had only made her look even more beautiful. One of his biggest regrets in life was that he hadn't been able to stay with her. He's been with his share of women, but she was always the one he thought about. She was always the one in his heart.

Misato noticed him staring and slammed her nearly empty bottle down ion the table. "What are you looking at you bastard?"

He belligerency only made him smile wider. "I was just thinking how you've only gotten even more beautiful since college. Why did you ever break up with me?"

"Why are you asking me that all of a sudden?"

"I've always wondered why," he told her with a playful shrug. "Everything was great and then out of the blue you ended things and wouldn't even talk to me. Why?"

"Isn't it obvious?" She snapped. "We were going to graduate and go our separate ways. I decided it was best to have a clean break so we could both move on." She picked the beer back up and started drinking again.

"We could have worked something out," he told her. "We could have at least tried a long distance relationship, met on holidays. I would have tried."

"Oh sure, you say that." Misato put down the empty and signaled for another one. "But I know your kind. Your work is everything. Sure you would have tried… for awhile. But pretty soon you'd start to forget to call. You'd have to cancel trips to see me because you just couldn't get away from work. Bit by bit you'd forget about me and I'd be left all alone crying. No thanks! I could see where it was going and what I did was for the best."

Kaji leaned back in his seat and waited as the waitress brought a fresh beer and departed. "You've got me all figured out."

"I know your type," she grumbled and started on her new beer.

"I'm not your father you know."

Misato suddenly began to choke and some beer fizzed out her nose. "The hell?" She glared at his still grinning face. "What does my father have to do with this?"

"You think I'm like him don't you?" Kaji asked sipping on his own beer. "You're afraid I'd abandon you the way he abandoned your mother and you. That's the real reason isn't it?"

"And here I thought you were just a spy, I never knew you were a psychiatrist too."

"Some things are not that hard to figure out," he told her lightly.

Her answer was to send him a look that should have made him burst into flames.

"I really do love you, you know. I always have," he told her.

"Knock it off," she told him sounding irritated. "I'm not sleeping with you so you don't need to say that."

"Well that's a shame," he teased. "I always wanted to have another go. You were always such a tiger between the sheets."

Her face turned a deep red. He'd always known just how to get a rise out of her. "Is this why you invited me here? Just to flirt with me and see how far you could get?"

"Well that was part of it," he said with a sigh. "Tell me Misato, would you like to know what's in Terminal Dogma? Would you like to know just what it is NERV is protecting and what the Angels are so desperate to reach?"

The beer in her hand froze halfway to her lips.

"You do don't you?" Kaji said.

"I'd be lying if I said I wasn't curious," she admitted.

Kaji looked around and then leaned in over the table towards her. She too leaned forward and allowed him to place his lips to her ears.

"The end of the world," he whispered to her.

"Bastard!" She punched him in the shoulder as hard as she could. "Knock it off with your stupid jokes!"

"Who said I was joking?" He rubbed his bruised shoulder. "Stop and think about it. All of the Angels' attacks have been directed to this place. Why? And how did NERV _know _this would be their target? They assembled their EVAs to defend _this _place. They knew this was where the Angels would come. Haven't you ever wondered about that?"

"This is mankind's last stronghold," Misato answered. "If it falls and they reach Terminal Dogma they would trigger Third Impact and make mankind extinct."

Kaji nodded. That was true as far as it went and the NERV personnel had been told that much in order to make them fully understand the consequence of failing to stop the Angels. "Yes, that's so, but _how _would Third Impact be triggered? What is in Terminal Dogma that is so dangerous? Beyond that what is SEELE's ultimate goal?"

Misato frowned. SEELE was the shadowy organization that was supposed to be behind the U.N. They were the ones who had allegedly given birth to NERV and forced the world leaders to cough up the countless billions necessary to fund the creation of the EVAs. All this at a time when the global economy was in tatters and millions were starving to death. Misato was not even sure that they existed, thought there always seemed to be rumors about them.

"What do you mean?" She asked him. "If they really exist then isn't saving all mankind from destruction enough of a goal?"

"You would think so," he said darkly. "What if it's not though? What if all this is just a means to an end?"

"A means to an end?" Misato shook her head trying to clear it. "You're not making sense. The greatest war ever fought, mankind's struggle to save itself, a means to an end? What could possible be more important?"

He looked her in the eye and spoke just four words. "The Human Instrumentality Project."

She stared at him blankly. "What's that?"

"It's the dream of a tiny group of fanatics." He replied. "They're a cult and they believe in it the way Catholics believe the Pope is God's representative on Earth. They're ready to do anything to make it a reality, and unfortunately this little cult can do an awful lot."

She again shook her head. "You're not making sense."

"I know," he said and sipped his beer some more. "I don't have time to explain everything, but what I'm saying will make sense eventually. Do you know what the most powerful thing in the world is?"

"A really pissed off fifty foot EVA?"

Chuckling he shook his head. "No, the truth. it's the one thing that can never be destroyed. The one things that can defeat all the armies in the world and overcome all the evils of all the selfish cold hearted men out there. The truth will always triumph in the end. I believe that."

"You've gotten philosophical in your old age Kaji." She slowly got to her feet swaying slightly. "Thanks for the meal but I've got to get back now. I honestly don't know what you were trying to get at though."

"You will," he promised her as he too rose to his feet.

Without warning he grabbed around the hips and yanked her into his arms. Before she would even try and protest he was kissing her for all that he was worth. He was very pleased to feel her returning his kiss. Despite all her protests and complaints he could still feel her love for him. It filled him with both happiness and a terrible sorrow. _I am so sorry Misato, I really do love you. If things were different I would never leave your side. Please don't cry for me for too long._

Without her or anyone else noticing he slipped a mini-CD into one of her pockets.

When the kiss ended he let go of her and she stood there a moment just looking up at him. Her face was red and she was breathing a bit hard.

"Any chance you want to go to a love motel and have a quickie?" He asked her with a rakish grin.

"Idiot," she growled and stomped off. "Don't ever do that again you jerk."

He stood there and watched her leave. This was for the best. He didn't want her very last memory of him to be a sad one. He saw her exit the restaurant and knew he wouldn't see her again in this world. He hoped with all his heart he would see her in the next one.

_Goodbye my love, I leave the rest to you._

XXX

When Misato arrived at NERV headquarters she found it a madhouse.

"What's going on?" She demanded.

"We've just gotten satellite telemetry indicating NERV base in Nevada in America has just disappeared." Lieutenant Hyuga told her.

"Disappeared? What does that mean? Was it destroyed by an Angel attack?"

"Details are still unknown," the Lieutenant told her. "However there was no indication from them that they were under attack."

"All communication with them was lost at 13:44 local time," Maya informed her. "From satellite imagery it seems the entire base as well as everything for an eighty nine kilometer radius has ceased to exist. It wasn't destroyed, it well, vanished. All that's left in a massive bowl in the earth. It's as if the base and all the land around it were just scooped out."

Misato saw the image being displayed on the overhead. It was just as Maya had described. There was no wreckage or sign of battle. Instead everything was simply gone. Local roads and highways just suddenly stopped as they hit a perfectly circular crater.

"They were supposed to be attempting to integrate and S2 engine into Unit 04. Could this have been the result?" Misato questioned.

"There's no way to know for certain," Hyuga said. "However that is the current working hypothesis."

"What a horrible accident," Misato said with a grimace. It was a hell of an understatement but all she could come up with.

"Yes," Fuyutsuki agreed quietly. "An accident."

How many thousands had just died in that 'accident?' They were all NERV staff doing all they could to help mankind survive the attacks by the Angels. The very best of people, and every one of them innocent. Yet they'd been deliberately sacrificed by SEELE just to keep NERV from having an EVA with a working S2 engine.

He'd always known SEELE was ruthless, but to go this far was more than Fuyutsuki could stomach. If they could slaughter their own people like this just to keep a secret then it was now clear who the enemy was.

Commander Fuyutsuki made up his mind and began forming plans for the day when the last Angel was defeated and he was forced to fight a different enemy.

XXX

It was early evening and Kaji was stumbling out of another bar. He hadn't bothered to go home. He was sure by now that his apartment had already been searched. His computer would have been wiped and they would have recovered the data core he's hidden in the wall safe. Finding that they would think they'd gotten to him in time before he would pass on the information.

They were fools.

No matter how many lies they spread, no matter how many innocent people they massacred the truth would always win out. You could kill men but you couldn't kill the truth no matter how you tried.

A light rain was coming down and the sidewalks and streets were nearly empty. He was crossing a street when he heard the high pitched squeal of tires gripping the road and an engine roaring. He turned to see a pair of headlights coming right at him.

"And here I always thought they'd shoot me."

The unmarked car hit him doing more than a hundred and twenty and sent his body flying. It sped away from the scene without even bothering to slow down. When an ambulance at last arrived more than thirty minutes later he was pronounced dead at the scene.


	32. The center cannot hold

"You know this really isn't necessary Major," the coroner told her. "We really don't need you to identify the body. There was ID on him and we were able to confirm with both fingerprints and DNA matching. There's no doubt. We wouldn't have contacted you if there had been."

"It's fine," Misato mumbled as they through the morgue. "I've seen plenty of dead bodies before."

That was an understatement. Before joining NERV she had served in the UN's Rapid Deployment Force or RDF. Back when the world was still in chaos from Second Impact she had seen action in Indonesia, Afghanistan, India, Mongolia, and northern China. UN forces had gone to try (and mainly fail) to keep the lid on small conflicts and keep them from erupting into full scale wars or civil wars. That didn't even mention her experiences here in Tokyo 3.

The coroner looked over at her. His white lab coat was covered in stains and he had deep bags under each eye. His feet shuffled along and there was a solemn acceptance etched into the lines of his face. "That may be true Major, but it's very different when it's someone you know."

"It's fine," she repeated.

"All right," he said with a weary shrug.

He led her over to a gurney. There was a human body on it covered by a single white sheet. Without comment the coroner took the top of the sheet and neatly pulled it down to the shoulders, revealing the face of a rather good looking man in his thirties. His eyes were closed and he had stubble. His skin was unnaturally white under the fluorescent lights.

The physician stood there and waited. Sometimes they cried. Sometimes they looked away. And sometimes, like now, they just stared. He saw the way the Major was looking down at the body before her. Whoever this man had been he'd obviously meant a great deal to her. Over the last few months he'd seen far too much death. Following battles the entire staff here would remain awake for days on end. They didn't perform autopsies on the victims of the battles as their sheer number made that impractical. They instead identified as many bodies as they could in order to give the families some sort of resolution. Very often they recovered only pieces and were only able to ID using DNA.

In that way the Major was lucky, if you could call it that, she would not have to wonder if he was gone. She would at least have that certainty, and unlike so many others she got to see him one final time.

He stood there in silence and waited. Though he had long since gotten used to death he still had respect for what the living had to go through. He waited and let the Major sort out whatever she had to.

After five minutes she simply turned around and left. "Thank you for allowing me to see for myself doctor. I will let myself out."

XXX

Misato returned to her apartment. Penpen was waiting by the door for her. The way his little head was staring up at her he obviously knew something had to be wrong.

"Idiot," she muttered. "Idiot, idiot, idiot, Kaji why were you always such an idiot?"

Her legs failed for some reason. She fell to her knees as hot tears came down her face.

XXX

"I want to wish all of you the very best," the principle told them.

Shinji looked about at the auditorium where all the remaining students were assembled. They all fit into the first five rows with empty seats still left over. During the opening ceremony the hall had been packed.

"Due to circumstances beyond our control all schools in Tokyo 3 are being closed temporarily. Whatever your current grades all of you will be given credit for successfully completing your academic year. Whether you will be moving on to another school or returning here I wish you all the very best."

As the three of them were heading to NERV Kaworu was chuckling. "Do you really think he believed anyone will ever come back to that school?" As he spoke they passed a skyscraper that had been torn roughly in half. There were few blocks left in the city without at least one ruined building, many were nothing but rubble. These days Tokyo 3's sky line was an ugly mismatch.

"It won't always be this way," Shinji said. "Some day the war will end and things will go back to normal."

Kaworu looked over at him affectionately. "You are very sweetly naïve Shinji-kun."

Shinji looked at him unsure of how to take that. Rei frowned.

When they arrived at the entryway they were surprised to see that many of the regular doors looked to be under repair. There was a line of personnel waiting to use the only two functioning doors. When the three of them at last made their way through they noticed engineering crews busy tearing open sections of the ceiling and floor. They seemed to be installing equipment; but heavy black canvases had been set up to hide whatever was being brought in.

Along with the engineering crews there were an unusual number of guards keeping an eye on things and making sure no one came too close to those black curtains.

"Have you noticed there's been a lot of new construction lately?" Shinji asked.

Rei gave a slight nod. "I think it has to do with security."

"Maybe they're afraid and Angel will sneak inside," Kaworu said with a playful smirk.

There were even more surprises waiting when they arrived and changed into their plug suits.

Misato was there looking very, very tired. The three of them had heard about what had happened to Kaji and had all told her how sorry they were. She'd dismissed that and told them not to worry about her, she and Kaji had never really been that close. They needed to concentrate on their piloting.

Unit 02 was _still _not responding to Kaworu and it was a major concern. If they could not fix the problem then they were down to just two EVAs. They were desperately trying to get Unit 05 sent to them by the Chinese, but there had been nothing but resistance. It was almost as if the Beijing branch didn't want them to have it. That was ridiculous of course, what was the use of building it if NOT to have it sent here? The Angels were not likely to start attacking Chinese soil. The additional models were all experiencing mechanical and productions issues and were not expected to be ready for months yet.

All the problems were made especially frustrating by the somewhat lackadaisical attitudes of the other NERV branches. Even though they were still fighting for survival none of them had any sense of urgency. Their opinion seemed to be that having won all their fights up to now they could manage just fine even if they were down to just the Prototype and Test type.

Did they not realize it had taken a couple miracles for them to make it this far? Did they think they had an unlimited supply? These problems fell squarely on Misato and she had to try and deal with them. She did not have time to mourn or feel sorry for herself.

And if all that were not enough to worry about the Commander had suddenly started issuing all sorts of new directives. He had just about every department moving at a dead run. He was installing a lot of changes and bringing in additional personnel. Some of the changes she approved of while others made little sense to her. She'd tried to talk to Fuyutsuki about them but the Commander had been unavailable.

One of the new people being brought in was standing to her right. He was a middle aged man named Fujima who was dressed in traditional Japanese clothing rather than a uniform.

"According to Commander Fuyutsuki's orders we will be cutting back on your simulation training," Misato announced.

"We're going to get less training?" Shinji asked. He was surprised but not upset by it.

"Just the opposite," Misato told them. "Now that you will no longer be attending school the Commander wants you to devote all those hours to training."

Shinji frowned not understanding. "You just said we were going to get less training."

She shook her head. "No, what I said was you were going to get less _simulation _training."

"You're going to have us train live in our EVAs?" Shinji asked.

"No," Misato replied and had to work to keep the troubled expression from her face. This was one of the orders that made no sense to her. "Fujima-san here is a member of one of Japan's oldest and most respected clans. He is an expert using a katana and has been asked to come here to give you special instruction."

The three EVA pilots (even Rei) looked confused.

"The three of you are going to learn how to fight using a sword," Misato clarified.

XXX

Ritsuko was at her computer keyboard typing like mad writing up a very special program. It was for a particular 'contingency' the Commander had brought up and he wanted it completed as soon as possible. Fuyutsuki had a lot of new orders not just for her but every section of NERV. She supposed this sudden new concern was due to what had happened to Unit 04 and the Nevada branch. The Commander was taking steps to guard against all sorts of different possibilities.

Naturally he _also _still wanted to try and communicate with Asuka.

Though the Commander had not come right out and said so Ritsuko assumed he'd written off as a pilot. What interested him was the information that might be inside of her. Careful study of her brain wave patterns indicated they were significantly different to what they had been. The only logical explanation for that was that the Angel had somehow affected her.

What secrets might it have shared? Learning them might mean a huge advantage in this war.

So far all efforts to communicate with her had failed. There was nothing physically wrong with the girl and her brain was incredibly active. Yet Asuka remained unresponsive.

_Maybe what she needs is a different stimulus,_ Ritsuko thought as her fingers continued to fly over the keys writing lines of code. It was at least worth trying.

XXX

Fuyutsuki sat at a table surrounded by twelve monoliths with red letters designating them SEELE one through twelve and announcing 'sound only.' he was not surprised the entire inner circle would want to talk to him. Given recent events these men were likely feeling a bit nervous. They pretended to be invincible and all knowing, but deep down hey were all scared.

The unknown terrified them.

"Things fall apart; the center cannot hold. Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world. The blood-dimmed tide is loosed, and everywhere the ceremony of innocence is drowned. The best lack all conviction, while the worst are full of passionate intensity"

"We are not here for a poetry reading Commander Fuyutsuki," a voice he recognized as Keel Lorenz's growled at him.

"My apologies, somehow that verse seemed oddly appropriate," Fuyutsuki told them.

"You don't seem to understand the seriousness of your situation." A voice he did not recognize said. "We ordered you to present yourself to us so that you could answer our questions. Why did you refuse to meet with us?"

_Because I didn't feel like being softened up for your little interrogation session. _"The next attack could come at any moment and I did not feel I could take the chance of being absent in case it did. If you can tell me with one hundred percent certainty there will be no attack while I am away then I will go to you immediately."

He was met with an uncomfortable silence.

These men did not like being reminded that for all their wealth and power they did _not _have all the answers.

"The data core we retrieved from Ryoji Kaji was originally in your possession. Just how did he come to acquire it?"

Fuyutsuki noted that they were ignoring his inquiry and proceeding directly to the examination. He had no doubt they would have preferred to have him tied up in front of them beaten and frightened for his life. He would not have put it past these men to have him kidnapped. As a precaution against that he had moved out of his apartment and now lived in NERV headquarters and was constantly surrounded by guards.

"I gave Kaji full access to NERV headquarters as I was instructed to by _this _group. He was a very talented spy and I can only assume he learned of the data core and found a way to steal it. I was not even aware it was missing until I was informed."

"So you're claiming to have known nothing about it?" Another unknown voice mocked. "You expect us to believe you were not complicit?"

Kaji had played all sides against one another in order to gain access to the places he wanted to see. He'd worked for SEELE as well as for the Japanese government and had assisted Gendo before offering to help him as well. Kaji really had been an outstanding spy with a knack for sniffing out secrets, but he had to have known that sooner or later it would get him killed. You could only burn so many bridges before you ran out of them.

"Why would I do that?" Fuyutsuki asked sounding reasonable. "I have nothing to gain from exposing the secrets of this committee." He had taken very great care in destroying the mini-CD along with the lap top he had used to read it. There was no evidence against him. These men had only their suspicions.

Though for them that might be enough.

"Why are you recruiting additional guards?" Keel's voice spoke once more. "What is the nature of these new security measures you are putting in place? We did not approve them."

"I am responsible for the safety of my base and so do not need approval," Fuyutsuki replied calmly. "The funds were taken from the NERV discretionary account and so are not an issue for the UN financial committee or for SEELE. I am simply acting to guard against possible terrorist attacks."

"Are you trying to make fun of us?" A voice demanded.

"Not at all," Fuyutsuki said calmly. "As we approach the end it is vital that all possibilities be accounted for. There is a great deal of hysteria out there and it is not beyond he realm of possibility that some group might attempt such an attack against us. I merely wish to increase the safety of the base."

"Worry about defeating the Angels not about terrorists!" A voice scowled.

"Have you forgotten just how much you owe this committee?" Keel asked. "We permitted Ikari Gendo to recruit you when it would have been far simpler to simply eliminate you. Never forget that. Should you become unreliable we will replace you."

"With whom?" Fuyutsuki asked politely.

He knew that was a very dangerous question. The committee members would undoubtedly see it as a challenge on his part. If they actually had someone in mind they might decide it was time to get rid of him.

Fortunately his query was met by an extended silence. Just as he'd expected they had no one to replace him with. Only a handful of people knew their true agenda. They were not about to hand over the EVAs to some one who was ignorant of their true importance and they had too little trust to share the truth with anyone now.

They had relied on Gendo to defeat the Angels and he had been Gendo's emergency replacement. Now that he was in charge there was no one else to turn to.

"We never doubted your loyalty," Keel spoke the obvious lie. "We only sought to remind you of your duty and to whom your allegiance belongs."

"Believe me when I say I am only too aware of that," Fuyutsuki said solemnly.

"Very well then," Keel replied. Apparently satisfied for the time being. "Three Angels remain to be defeated. Continue and do not fail us, the destiny of man rides with you."

One by one the monoliths disappeared. When they were all gone the lights came up revealing an empty room.

Fuyutsuki let out a long breath. He had gotten away with it.

For now at least.


	33. A different stimulus

All around NERV headquarters engineers were busy installing and camouflaging semi-trailers covered with twenty foot tall metal tubes and spinning radar dishes.

The 'Watchdog' was an American weapon system designed and put into production just prior to Second Impact. It was meant to provide short range air defense to fixed locations and had seen service during conflicts in Mexico, Panama, Nicaragua, Bolivia, and Argentina. It was part of the first generation of 'auto-defense' weapon systems meant to be left unmanned with the capability of independent action. Each Watchdog contained thirty two SM-14 surface to air missiles with a maximum range of roughly forty miles. The systems could be tied into a central firing control or left to act automatically in case any unidentified targets entered radar lock. The Watchdog was designed specifically to guard American military bases from surprise air attacks and had proven effective in its role.

Especially against helicopters.

XXX

"Careful with that!" One very nervous engineer said to another.

"I know," the other man said crossly. He carefully handed over the small metal canister painted a bright yellow with a clearly visible skull and crossbones on it.

"Why are we even doing this?" The first man complained. "It's not like this will stop an Angel anyway."

"I hear it's because of terrorists," the second man said sharing the rumors going around the base. "There are supposed to be a bunch of fundamentalist Christian groups who believe the Angels really are just that and we shouldn't be fighting against God's will."

The first man simply grunted as he ever so carefully installed the canister. "Well if any of them are stupid enough to visit us they'll be meeting God face to face in quick order."

XXX

"Do you think the Commander's gotten a bit crazy?" A different engineer assigned by the door entrances asked his work mate. "I mean all these new security measures, it's almost like he expects an invasion. And how many more guards have we taken on?"

"I hear the number has doubled," his friend replied. "Plus they're all former special services military; Green Berets, SAS, Spetsnaz."

The first man nodded as he worked to install the motion sensor. "Exactly my point. Why do we need all this all of a sudden? I mean seriously, do you think a few Christian terrorists are going to be able to sneak into the geofront and blow up the EVAs? It's ridiculous!"

"After everything we've seen would anything surprise you?"

That elicited a grunt and sour expression. "You have a point there."

XXX

"Look! How many times do I need to explain it?" Misato yelled into the phone. "We need Unit 05! I don't care about the new regulations! We'll take responsibility for it but we need it sent to us immediately!"

In her life Katsuragi Misato had dealt with a lot of frustration. She had grown up with an absentee father who had then inexplicably sacrificed himself to save her. She had fallen in love with a man who was a copy of that same father she both loved and despised. She had joined the UN military in hopes of making a difference and had been forced to watch time and again as their efforts to curtail bloodshed failed. She had been recruited by NERV and had come in hopes of destroying the Angels who had caused the deaths of over three billion people and were likely to finish off the remainder.

She had been frustrated by the possibility the Angels might not return and she might not get her chance at revenge. But they had come and she had taken the greatest satisfaction in helping to destroy them one after the other, even when it required a miracle. Now though all the frustration she'd known in her life seemed like nothing.

"I am very sorry," the oh so polite voice on the other end of the line answered. "However given the catastrophic results of the transport of Unit 03 and field test of Unit 04 it has been decided to suspend all activity with Unit 05 until further notice."

"WHAT FUCKING GOOD DOES IT DO TO PUT UNIT 05 INTO COLD STORAGE?" Misato screamed at the top of her lungs drawing the attention of everyone else in Central Dogma.

"Until the danger of another catastrophic event has been ruled out that is the decision of the Beijing branch," the voice remained subdued and totally unaffected.

Misato took a deep breath and steadied herself. If she could have she would have gladly reached through the secured line and choked the idiot to death. Since that wasn't an option she could only try, again, to make the person see reason.

"Look," she ground out. "Unit 02 is refusing to operate with its new pilot. That means we currently have only two functioning EVAs."

"You have defeated Angels using only one or two EVAs, that should be sufficient."

"Do you really want to bet the fate of the world on that?" She couldn't keep the exasperation from her voice. "There's no telling how powerful the next Angel might be. We may need that third EVA just to survive. What sense does it make to not send it to us?"

"I appreciate your situation Major…"

"No, I really don't think you do," she snapped her temper again fraying. "Look, we'll put Unit 02 in storage right now if that helps. We'll provide the transport and accept full responsibility for it. I'll fly there tonight if you want and personally over see things. I…"

"I am very sorry Major," the dispassionate voice broke in. "However Beijing is a city of six million and we are not willing to risk an incident here simply to provide you a superfluous asset."

"SUPERFLUOUS?" She howled. "Do you idiots get that we're trying to save the human race here? What could possibly be more important than that? Do you think Beijing will be safe when the world ends?"

"The decision has been made and approved by the UN Central Command, please take up any further objections with them. Good day Major."

With that came a soft click and a dead line.

She slammed the phone down in frustration. "Idiots! I swear they want us to fail!"

_Why? Why? Why? _She thought as she rubbed her temples. Up until just recently they had gotten all the help they'd asked for from the UN and the various governments. They had gotten billion of dollars at a time when no one knew if the Angels would ever come back. Now that they were back and trying to cause Third Impact people were suddenly giving her the cold shoulder. How could they not understand what was at stake here?

XXX

"Thank you for finally letting us come see Asuka," Shinji said as the three of them walked along the hospital corridor. "I've been really worried about her."

_I am not surprised_, Ritsuko thought as she turned an eye to him. "Shinji, I need to warn you not to expect much. The fact is she is in a comatose state and there's no way to know if she will ever recover."

"But there's hope right?" Shinji asked pleadingly. "I mean she's alive and there's nothing really wrong with her so she may be just fine eventually. Right?"

"There is always hope," Ritsuko said and left it at that. She could understand why he was so desperate to believe Asuka would recover some day. It did no harm to let him hold on to that hope.

Walking beside him Rei was silent.

"What about you Rei?" Ritsuko asked. "Do you hope Asuka will recover?"

"Naturally," the girl replied. "The situation would be much improved if she were able to pilot Unit 02 rather than pilot Kaworu."

_Typical_, Ritsuko thought with disdain. _Except where Shinji is involved she doesn't feel anything for any one._ Her relationship with Rei was a complicated one and even she wasn't sure how to describe her feelings for the girl. Hate? Jealousy? Admiration? Pity? Curiosity? Fear? It was a mix of all those and which one had the upper hand varied by the day if not the hour.

Rei (at least the original version of Rei) had instigated her mother's suicide. She had been the center of all of Gendo's aspirations and been more important to him by far than his lover. Ritsuko had been in charge of the girl's heath and well being and was the one to provide the regular medical check ups and regimen of pills that kept the girl alive and functioning. The girl had never once so much as thanked her.

_I suppose resentment is at the top of the emotional ladder today_, Ritsuko noted and looked away.

Outside Asuka's door were a pair of guards with sub machine guns. They recognized Ritsuko but still required her and the pilots to present their IDs before admitting them inside.

When they went in Shinji froze near the door. Asuka was lying in a hospital bed surrounded by various monitors. Her eyes were wide open and she was staring lifelessly up at the ceiling.

"Asuka?" He called to her faintly. He remained rooted to the spot, unwilling to come closer. "Asuka are you okay?"

"I warned you not to expect much Shinji," Ritsuko noted as she looked over the printouts from the various monitors.

"What's wrong with her?" He asked plaintively. A quiet empty Asuka was not right, it was not normal. Despite Ritsuko's warnings he had expected her to be glaring at him and calling him an idiot.

"We frankly don't know," Ritsuko said. "Physically she is fine. Mentally her mind is more active than yours or mine. She is the first person to have such an intense encounter with and Angel. The result appears to be what you see before you."

Shinji stared at the girl lying there in front of him. "This is all my fault isn't it?"

"No," Ritsuko replied sternly. "It's the Angel that caused this. What you did was necessary. If you hadn't stopped the enemy she wouldn't be alive now. Look Shinji this is not your fault and I don't expect you to be able to fix it. I just brought you and Rei here to try and give her a different stimulus to see if we might get some sort of reaction."

"What do you want me to do?" He asked in a small voice.

"Just come over to her bed side and talk to her, that's all."

"I… I don't think I can." He said feeling timid. Whatever Ritsuko said he couldn't help but feel guilty.

"It's all right Shinji, I'll do it." Rei spoke and walked right up to Asuka's bedside. She bent over slightly to make sure her face was in Asuka's view.

"Hello pilot Soryu. I regret your current condition and hope for your speedy and complete recovery."

They waited but Asuka simply continued to stare up at the ceiling.

"Well, that's about what I expected." Ritsuko noted and scribbled something on a clip board. "Shinji, you come over and talk to her for a bit."

"I don't think I can."

"Shinji-kun," Rei began. "You should just…"

Rei let out a startled gasp when Asuka suddenly grabbed her wrist and sat bolt up right in bed. Her eyes were alive and staring at Rei's face.

"Asuka! You're awake!" Shinji cried joyously.

Ritsuko was startled into silence. All the monitors were going crazy showing a spiked heart rate and brain activity that was off the charts.

"I looked, and behold, a pale horse! Its rider's name was Death, and all Hell followed with her!" Asuka spoke in a too loud voice that was consumed with madness. She gazed at Rei with such intensity that even the stoic girl could feel it and tried to pull away. Asuka though would not release her, holding on like a steel vice.

"Please let go of me Asuka." Rei spoke with a very slight tremor in her voice. Few things frightened her, but Asuka's unexplained reaction was definitely alarming.

Asuka continued not appearing to hear.

"Mother of all and killer of your father. You are the bringer of the apocalypse, you will bring death to all of your children. Your father swims in the LCL, swims in the LCL, swims in the LCL! You are the wolf Ayanami Rei! You will bring the end of days and turn the oceans to LCL, to LCL, to LCL!"

"Let go of me Asuka," Rei said and pulled her arm back with all of her might. Asuka held tight, her fingers digging into Rei's flesh.

"You will betray them all!" Asuka howled. "The just and the unjust alike! Betray them and kill them as you killed your father! You are the Angel of Death Ayanami Rei!"

"Let me go!" Rei began yanking her arm back desperate to get free of her.

Seeing Rei's panic Shinji ignored his own fears and grabbed Asuka's arm to try and get her to release her hold. "Asuka please stop this you're scaring Rei."

Asuka at last seemed to hear and turned her face to look at Shinji. She let go of Rei who quickly took several steps back. Asuka took hold of Shinji's hands and pressed them to her lips and kissed them reverently.

"Shinji you are the salvation of the world! You will bring back one in four and humanity shall live on because of you! Because of you, because of you, because of you! You will bring the golden age of man, there will be no more war, no more killing. You are the bringer of life and peace, blessed is your name Ikari Shinji!" She kissed his hands and wept. "Grant me your blessing Shinji."

Frightened he pulled his hands away and stepped back. "Asuka you're insane."

"Please give me your blessing Shinji! Tell me I am forgiven my sins!"

As all this was going on Ritsuko's mind was focused on just one thing she had heard.

'Killer of your father… Your father swims in the LCL'

"Both of you get out of here now," Ritsuko told them. "I'm going to call in a medical team and try to calm her down."

Shinji and Rei both nodded, only too happy to go.

"Bless me Shinji!" Asuka cried as they left. "Give me your blessing!"

As Ritsuko called in her medical team her mind refused to let go of what she had heard, and wondered if Gendo might still be here somewhere in the lake of LCL.

_If he is then I will kill that little bitch._


	34. The Tenth Angel

Ritsuko was in her scuba gear swimming through the LCL pooled at the bottom of Terminal Dogma. In her right hand was a portable underwater flashlight. Even with that it was hard to see more than about five feet in front of her, the LCL down near the bottom was as murky as brown milk. It made a small lake and searching all of it would take a long time.

_What am I doing? _She wondered. _Do I honestly expect to find anything? _The rational scientist in her told her she was being ridiculous. She was following the ravings of someone who was clearly insane, acting like some cultist. No matter what Asuka had suffered there was no way she could possibly know what had happened to Gendo Ikari. It also made absolutely no sense. Rei was his daughter, at heart if not in the flesh. She had absolutely adored Gendo. Why would she kill him and then dump his body here?

_Did she love him when he had her arrested and locked in a cell? _The other part of her whispered. That part of her that was a passionate and desperate woman. That part of her that had loved Gendo beyond all reason even though she knew he was only using her. That part of her _needed _to know the truth. The terrible fact was she _wanted _to find him. The idea that he had been taken away from her was easier to accept than that of his abandoning her. If he was dead she could put some meaning to what she'd felt for him. It would be a tragic love cut short by an inhuman little bitch. If he really was at some new post somewhere then she had just been tossed aside and she was nothing but pathetic. She was consumed with all the bitterness and hate of a spurned lover and longed for someone to take out her rage on, someone to blame.

_God_, she thought, _what a horrible person I am._

Checking her tanks she saw she still had more than an hour's worth of air. She continued to swim through the darkness searching.

XXX

Even though there was no more school Rei still dressed in her school uniform. It wasn't just out of habit. Wearing it reminded her of happier more 'normal' times. Even though she had never truly fit in she had still been happy in her role as a student. Being in class with Shinji, being in the music club, studying together and helping him get ready for tests. All of it had made her happy.

She would have liked to have gone on to High School and eventually to University. She had no doubts that she would have been at Shinji's side the entire time. She would have liked to have married him one day and had a family. It was odd, given who and what she was, but the fact was whenever she imagined her self in a wedding dress standing beside an older Shinji her heart would flutter and she would feel warm all over. All she truly wanted was to be an ordinary girl and to live an ordinary life with the one she loved.

But that was never going to happen.

She was not ordinary and she knew what her fate was. But even if her future was carved in stone even someone like her was allowed to dream.

"Shinji-kun you really need to get up now or we're going to be late."

On their bed Shinji was curled up half beneath the covers. "I don't feel like it," he told her morosely.

"You know you have to Shinji-kun. If you don't come I'm sure the Commander will send people to check on you."

He was silent for a long moment.

"It's my fault," he said mournfully. "It's all my fault."

She didn't need to ask what he was referring to. "You only did what you had to Shinji. What happened to Asuka was not your fault."

"What about Toji and his sister? What about all the civilians who have been killed during our battles?"

"What about them?" Rei asked without a note of curiosity. "We are not gods Shinji. We do not have the power to wage war bloodlessly. We do not kill anyone deliberately except for our enemies. It is war that kills, not you. Would it have been better to not fight and let the Angels initiate Third Impact?"

Again he was silent for a time.

"I'm tired Rei. I don't want to fight any more."

"Would you like me to tell them that Shinji-kun?" She asked him seriously. "I will if you like, but all I think that will happen is they will make you meet with Ritsuko for a psychological examination."

"No, what would be the point?" He pushed aside the blankets and wearily got to his feet. "I don't have a choice do I?"

She looked closely at him and spoke very seriously. "For right now, no. We are both bound by fate to this path, but the day will come when you will have a choice. On that day you will be free to choose anything at all, and whatever it is I promise I will give it to you."

"What are you talking about?"

"Nothing," she said and began combing your hair. "Hurry up and get dressed Shinji-kun we can't be late for training."

XXX

Fujima was standing before them in a pristine white yukata. His eyes were hard and unflinching. He looked at them with a stony resolve, his lips downturned and grim. One might have thought he was about to go into battle rather than start training his new students. In both hands he held a katana. Four feet of perfectly sharp steel honed to a razor's edge. There was another foot of black handle.

"You must hold your weapon like this," he told them. "One hand at the top and one at they bottom. You do not simply slash or hack with your sword. You _cut_."

He demonstrated. Using both hands he swiftly sliced down from over his head, then from each shoulder, from each side, and once straight up from below. Each movement was fast and clean and they could hear the slight 'woosh' as the blade cut the air.

"The top hand pushes while the bottom hand pulls back. Each and every strike is aimed at a specific point. You never wave it about wildly, you must always be in full control of it and know where it is you are aiming. Not only your hands but your arms and your body must all work together and go into your strike so that it is fast and strong. It takes years to truly master a katana and there is no chance any of you will have that much time. I will however teach all of you the basics and do all that I can to at least make you proficient. From this day forward we will spend six hours _every _morning training. We will begin with the basics and from today onward you will wear your katana with you every waking moment."

"Why?" Kowaru asked. Like his two fellow pilots he was dressed in grey sweat shirt and shorts holding a katana out in front of him with both hands. From the corner of his eye he noticed Shinji sweating a bit and reddening with the effort. "Isn't it enough for us just to train? What's the point of wearing them too?"

Fujima turned his full focus on the silver haired boy. All his previous students had quickly learned to fear that look but Kowaru simply stared back with his usual little grin. "To behind with you will address me as Fujima-sensei from this point forward. You will keep your sword with you at all times so that it may become a part of you. You must not think of it as just a weapon, it must come to be as much a part of you as your own body."

He gave a short laugh. "That's sort of silly isn't it?"

Fujima took two steps forward and slapped him across the face so hard he knocked the boy down.

"Hey!" Shinji cried but a look from Fujima silenced him.

"You three are fighting to save humanity from destruction and I am here to take some small part of this battle. This is the greatest possible honor for both myself and my clan. I will therefore do whatever I can to see that you learn the katana as swiftly as possible. Do you find anything about that whimsical or amusing?"

Kowaru touched his cheek. "Not right now I don't."

"I am not here to amuse you or coddle you," he said stonily. "I am here to teach you the blade, and that I will do. Now get on your feet."

"Yes Fujima-sensei." Kowaru said as he got back up.

"Now to begin with we will practice the over hand cut," brought the sword over his head and slowly demonstrated. "Notice the placement of my hands and how I step forward into the cut. Each of you try to copy me and I will correct you."

It was a very long six hours.

XXX

In her hospital room Asuka had a couple attendants monitoring her. They both looked up as the instruments alerted them to a sudden upturn in brain activity and heart rate. She was still lying in her bed with her eyes wide open staring up at the ceiling.

The blank expression was gone though and her lips quirked in a smile. "Come brother. Come brother. Come brother. Your hour has arrived."

XXX

Out in the sea the Tenth Angel arose and began towards Tokyo 3.


	35. Eighth Battle

The sirens began their long familiar wailing. All through NERV headquarters the personnel began running to get to their duty stations. There was no panic and no obvious fear though everyone moved as fast as they could. By now they were all veterans and ready to face one more epic battle.

Though of course only three children would be asked to decide the outcome. Once more the fate of the world depended on kids too young to even legally buy a beer.

XXX

When Shinji heard the sirens he stumbled to a halt. He was dressed in the simple white shirt and black trousers he always wore. Belted on to his hip was a leather scabbard where he now wore his sword. He thought he could feel the siren's blare passing through him. His stomach ached and he suddenly needed to catch his breath. His hands were trembling and he thought his legs might give out.

_Why am I so scared?_ He wondered.

From the very first time he'd been shown an image of the Third Angel he'd been scared. He didn't want to fight. He didn't want to die. As he'd told his father he'd been an EVA pilot because it had been fun and because he'd wanted to help. He had never once imagined he would be asked to actually go into battle. He'd fought seven times now and the fear hadn't lessened. Every time he wondered if he was about to die.

He felt a warm hand touch him.

"What's wrong Shinji-kun?" Rei asked gently.

"I'm afraid," he whispered feeling ashamed. "Why is it us Rei? We're not soldiers. Why do we have to do this? I don't want to fight any more!"

He knew Rei would never hate him for his weakness, but he was still ashamed of admitting it to her. His father would never do that. _I guess I'm not as strong as he is_.

"It's all right Shinji," she said tenderly. To the rest of the world Rei was always emotionless and vacant. For him alone she could show her feelings. "We have to do this because we are the only ones. Whether you call it fate or destiny this is the reason why we were born. We do this because there is no one else."

He looked at her and slowly nodded.

"There is no shame in being scared," she told him.

"What would you do if I died?" He wasn't sure where that question had come from. If it surprised her or upset her she didn't let it show.

"I would bring you back." Rei answered as seriously as she always did.

He blinked and couldn't help but give a startled laugh. "Thanks Rei, if I could I would do the same for you."

"I know," she said. "Come on Shinji it will be all right."

Though still scared he headed toward the locker rooms with Rei.

XXX

"What have we got?" Misato shouted as she arrived in Central Dogma. High above on the overhead was the image of the latest enemy.

It had a skull face resting atop a misshapen lumpy form. There were not arms or legs to be seen and it was floating over the ground moving swiftly by some sort of levitation. It was surrounded by a couple squadrons of attack helicopters that were shadowing its movements.

"The enemy has been designated the Tenth Angel Zeruel," Lieutenant Mikoto announced.

"Ugly looking beast isn't he?" Misato said. "How much time do we have?"

"Enemy arrival in Tokyo 3 in approximately four minutes," Lieutenant Maya announced.

Misato nodded to herself absently. "I want all three EVAs ready to launch as soon as possible."

"All three?" Mikoto questioned. "Pilot Kaworu has still not successfully synced with EVA Unit 02."

"I know that, but we'll try any way. If EVA 02 still won't function we'll eject him and try the dummy plug system." _Assuming the dummy plug works any better. _The EVAs were still something of a mystery even now.

All around her the staff carried out her orders with their usual precision. They had won so many battles up until now perhaps they all just assumed they would win this one too. Misato was careful not to show them any of her doubts. She however had not forgotten the fact that at least two of their victories had been miracles. They'd been beating the odds for awhile now. Any gambler could tell you that sooner or later the odds would catch up to you.

Though she did not show it, she had a very bad feeling.

XXX

"You're taking your sword with you into the entry plug?" Shinji asked.

"Naturally," Kaworu told him. "During World War II Japanese pilots and soldiers from samurai families would regularly take their katanas into battle with them. Besides," Kaworu smirked. "I wouldn't want sensei getting mad at me again."

"Why are you even suiting up? Can you actually pilot Unit 02?"

"Who knows?" He sounded as cheerful as ever. You would never guess he was about to go into battle.

Shinji knew he looked anything but.

XXX

As the entry plug flooded Kaworu set the scabbard down and looked about at the control panels. "Shall we set aside our differences just for a little while?"

To his own surprise he felt the EVA shudder and come to life around him.

XXX

"EVA Unit 02 is responding!" Maya announced happily. "Sync rate at 60.2%!"

"That means we have three functioning EVAs!" Lieutenant Shigeru said.

_Heh, maybe our luck is still in. _Misato thought. "Just in time too."

On the overhead Zeruel was shown to have arrived at the outskirts of their city. Its eye sockets began to glow. A few seconds later two beams of energy in the form of gigantic crosses lashed out.

Misato was caught off guard as the ground shook at the ground shook and the lights in Central Dogma dimmed. She managed not to fall but only just. It was a bad sign.

"Unbelievable!" Mikoto said. "It blasted through all twenty three armored layers in just one attack! It's power is completely beyond anything we have faced before."

The ground shook again and again as entire buildings crashed down into the geofront. A huge hole had been ripped in the ground high above them.

"Order the local defenses to open up with everything they have!" Misato barked. "We need them to buy us as much time as possible even if it's just a few minutes. Deploy the EVAs to the geofront, there's no reason to send them to the surface now."

On the overhead they all watched as the air around the Angels filled with fire. Cruise missiles lanced out and struck it head on. They exploded with no effect at all. Artillery shells and smaller caliber rockets also did nothing.

Zeruel's eye sockets glowed.

Again its beams fired. The ground shook once more as all the defenses were blown to bits. Just that quickly the battle of the surface was ended. Levitating over the hole it had created Zeruel dropped itself down into the geofront.

XXX

"All of you be careful!" Misato's voice was ringing in his ears. "This enemy looks to be very powerful! The three of you need to take him on together!"

"Understood," Rei said indifferently.

"Right," Kaworu said.

"Ye... yes," Shinji replied. He was staring at the shattered buildings and wreckage that lay in front of him. _How could it have done this much damage this quickly?_

"Here it comes!" Kaworu said excitedly. He lifted his rifle to his shoulder eager for his first taste of combat.

Within the entry plug the control panels suddenly flashed red and the machinery came to an abrupt halt. The rifle fell out of Unit 02's hands without ever being fired. Its arms dropped listlessly to its sides and the gigantic EVA simply stood there defenseless and unmoving.

"I see," Kaworu said inside the entry plug. He was not surprised. "You really are trying to get me killed aren't you?" He actually sounded sympathetic. "I'm sorry, it'll be soon but not today."

XXX

"What happened?" Misato shouted.

"EVA Unit 02 sync rate has fallen to zero!" Maya said.

"Not now damn it! Quick! Activate the dummy plug system!"

"Unit 02 is refusing to acknowledge activation signal," Mikoto cried out. "Unit 02 remains off line!"

_I wonder if we've finally used up all of our miracles. _"Rei! Shinji! Protect Unit 02!"

"Acknowledged," Rei said.

"Right!" Shinji answered. Seeing Kaworu vulnerable he set aside his own worries. Together he and Rei opened up on the descending Angel in hopes of at least distracting it while Unit 02 was helpless.

Their bullets hit Zeruel's AT field to no effect.

The Angel appeared to sense the EVA's weakness and changed course to head right towards it.

"Kaworu!" Shinji howled. "You need to eject!"

"She won't let me," he answered. "She's very vindictive."

That made no sense to Shinji. His clip ran out and he was slapping in a fresh one as the Angle landed in front of the motionless EVA. It's lumpy shape appeared to unwrap as two flat thin 'arms' formed. The arms slashed out like gigantic whips one from right to left and the other from left to right. With no AT field active they cut right into EVA Unit 02's abdomen. One slicing just beneath the shoulders and the other right at the hips. Both arms were neatly cut off and the EVA itself hacked into three pieces.

Red blood gushed out as the severed pieces fell to the ground.

"Aaaaaahhhh!" Kaworu howled. He felt as if someone had just chopped him up.

"Kaworu! Rei look out!" Shinji yelled.

Zeruel wasted no time. With one EVA destroyed it turned its attentions to the next. Its eyes glowed.

Unit 00 stood its ground and continued to fire its rifle right up to the moment the beams struck.

There was a massive explosion as Zeruel's blast hit Unit 00's AT field.

Smoke and debris rose obscuring everything.

"Rei! Rei are you all right?" Shinji cried out.

The only sound he heard though the com line were Kaworu;s incoherent cries of pain.

Unit 01 stood there with rifle in hand before the cloud of smoke and ash. As it cleared he was faced with the massive Angel now turning to face him. Behind it he glimpsed the form of Unit 00 lying in a heap on the ground and not moving.

XXX

"What happened?" Misato yelled. In bare minuted the situation had gone from bad to worse and was quickly approaching catastrophic.

"Unit 00's sync rate at zero," Shigeru told her."

"What?" Misato cried horrified. "Is Rei..."

"It looks like Rei is unconscious," Maya said. "There is no significant damage to the EVA."

_Not yet. _Misato thought grimly. But with Rei unconscious that meant all that was left to save them was Unit 01 and Shinji.

XXX

Seeing the massive Angel now facing him Shinji felt his heart thudding and his hands starting to shake.

Zeruel's eyes began to glow.


	36. Breaking the limits

Zeruel's eyes began to glow.

"Yaaaaaaahhhh!" Shinji screamed, a wild cry of rage and terror.

Unit 01 brought its rifle up to its shoulder and blazed away. The metal slugs slammed into the Angel's AT Field without effect. Zeruel merely hovered there in place as its eyes glowed brighter and its energy beam charged.

"The enemy's about to fire!" Shigeru warned.

"Shinji move!" Misato yelled.

Inside his EVA he either ignored her or did not hear her. Shinji continued to shoot.

When the high pitched whine reached a climax two beams of energy fired out of the Angel's eyes. They struck Unit 01's AT Field with a massive explosion.

The field held, but the rifle was sent flying from the EVAs grip as Unit 01 was knocked back more than a hundred feet. It landed sprayed out on the ground. Inside the entry plug Shinji gasped, it had felt like being hit in the chest with a baseball bat.

"Shinji!" Inside Central Dogma Misato turned to her staff. "Is he hurt? What's the status of Unit 01?"

"The pilot's readings are fine," Maya called out. "Except for elevated heart rate and metabolism Shinji is fine. Sync rate is at 55%."

""There is no damage to the EVA, the AT Field power levels have dropped to 87%." Mikoto said.

On the vast overhead screen they could see the Angel's eyes beginning to glow again.

"Shinji! You have to get up! Get moving before it opens fire again! We'll send up another rifle." Misato ordered. With Unit 02 destroyed and Unit 00 incapacitated all that stood between them and the end of the world was Unit 01.

Over the communications link they heard Shinji's reply.

"Make it stop," the fourteen year old boy whimpered. "Please make it stop."

They all heard him crying.

_No not now! _Misato had always been worried about relying on children to pilot as opposed to actual soldiers. It was the reason why she had tried testing military pilots to see if any of them could sync with the Evangelions. One of her fears had always been that one of them might break at a moment like this.

"Shinji! Shinji please you need to move!"

Zeruel fired.

Unit 01's AT Field remained active and caught the blast. The EVA was sent flying and then bouncing and skidding across the ground.

They heard Shinji cry out in pain.

When the EVA finally stopped moving it curled up into a fetal position there on the ground. Humanity's last hope was cowering and shaking.

"Stop, stop, please stop! I can't do this I'm scared! Please make it stop!"

Misato gritted her teeth. There was no time for sympathy or gentle words. "Shinji you have to get a hold of yourself! You need to stand up and fight! There is no one else! Please Shinji! You need to be strong!"

"I can't," Shinji mewled through his tears. "I just can't."

"Shinji if you don't the Angel will initiate Third Impact! Do you understand? Everyone will die if you don't pull yourself together and fight!"

"I can't, I can't, I can't…"

On the screen Zeruel appeared to be looking over the trembling Unit 01. It apparently decided the EVA was no longer a threat. The Angel turned about to face the pyramid that was the top of NERV headquarters.

Its eyes began to glow.

A moment later two beams of energy flashed out. In a single massive explosion the pyramid was completely obliterated.

In Central Dogma Misato was knocked to the floor as everything shook violently. Sirens began to shriek and the lights and instruments were momentarily knocked out before the emergency backups kicked in.

"Upper structures destroyed! Internal shaft in exposed!" Shigeru warned.

"Internal defenses activated, last line defenses activated!" Mikoto called.

"Units 00 and 01 on line but unresponsive!" Maya reported.

"Damn it." Misato struggled back to her feet. Up above her she could see the Angel slowly approach the open shaft that would lead it straight to Terminal Dogma. It didn't seem to be in a particular hurry and was ignoring the still intact EVAs as well as the tracers and small arms fire from the internal defenses.

She glared hatefully at the monster.

_Oh? Do you think it's already over and we'll just tamely go to our fate? Fuck you. We'll fight to the very last._

"Activate the Dummy Plug Systems on Units 00 and 01!"

"But…"

"NOW!" Misato shrieked.

"Yes," Lieutenant Shigeru tamely obeyed.

Misato had never trusted the Dummy Plug and had thought of it as an emergency backup. Well, if this wasn't an emergency…

Red lights flashed across some screens.

"Unit 01 is refusing the Dummy Plug." Maya announced.

"The Dummy Plug is now active on Unit 00," Mikoto stated. "The pilot remains unconscious."

On the overhead Unit 00 rose to its feet. Zeruel stopped its approach towards the shaft and turned its full attention back to the EVA.

"Keep trying to reactivate the Dummy Plug in Unit 01. Order Unit 00 to charge in and attack the Angel with its prog knife." Misato ordered. "Send out an emergency recovery team to pick up Kaworu and bring him inside."

"Do you want to eject Rei as well?" Maya asked.

Misato hesitated for just a second. The Dummy Plug system was _supposed _to be able to generate an AT Field without a pilot on board. Somehow though they had never actually tested it on any of the EVAs.

"No," Misato answered. She cared about Rei, but with everything on the line she was not willing to take the chance of seeing Unit 00's AT Field fail.

As Unit 00 pulled out its box cutter the Angel's eyes once more began to glow. Unit 00 rushed forward. The twin beams fired. The EVA ducked and staggered forward as they missed. Unit 00 slammed it's AT Field against the enemy's. Despite having the stronger field the floating Zeruel was pushed back, away from the remnants of the top of NERV headquarters. With both hands gripping its prog knife Unit 00 slashed and stabbed in a wild frenzy. Misato and the others could see the effort working; individual layers of the Angel's AT Field were being destroyed, but unlike other enemies Zuruel had multiple layers.

Misato could tell that alone Unit 00 had no real chance of defeating the enemy.

"Maya what is the status of Unit 01?"

"It is still refusing to accept the Dummy Plug."

"Rescue team has recovered Pilot Kaworu and is taking him to receive medical treatment." Mikoto said.

"Reopen the com link to the Unit one pilot." Misato ordered.

As soon as it was done they all heard Shinji's tears.

Misato's heart felt for him. She knew what it was like to be a child and to be forced to deal with horrors. She knew he had never asked for any of this and was as much a victim of this war as anyone. He was no soldier, he was just a kid.

But she had no time to be gentle with him.

"Shinji! Unit 00 is fighting the Angel! Rei's life is in danger!"

"What?" He sounded dazed and uncertain.

"Are you going to just sit there and cry while Rei fights? Are you?" She demanded. "If Rei dies it will be because of you Shinji! Are you really going to sit there and do nothing? Are you?"

Inside his entry plug Shinji slowly uncurled and stared at his monitors. He saw Unit 00 battling Zeruel.

As Unit 00 drew back for another slash it was struck by the Angel's lazers. There was a huge explosion and Unit 00 was thrown back. Showing more aggressiveness than it had up to now Zeruel followed hot on its heels.

As Unit 00 tried to recover and climb back to its feet flat razor 'arms' slices off its right arm and cut deep into its side, sending out two massive gushes of blood into the air.

"Aaaaaaahhh!" Rei suddenly screamed in pain, coming awake inside her plug.

"Rei!" Shinji shouted. Unit 01 jumped up to it's feet.

"Unit 01's sync rate has spiked to 98%!"

Misato nodded grimly. She wasn't proud of it, but she had just played Shinji as smoothly as Commander Ikari ever had.

Zeruel's eyes glowed.

It's blast sent the damaged and weakened Unit 00 flying. This time when it crashed there was no further movement.

"Pilot is unconscious again. Dummy Plug system has failed. AT Field is at zero." Mikoto reported.

Zeruel moved to hover above the motionless EVA.

Zeruel's eyes glowed.

There was primal roar. Unit 01 raced across the space between them and charged straight into the Angel. Zeruel turned to face the new threat only to see it reach out and **tear apart **the remaining layers of its AT Field. As Zeruel was being slammed into the ground its eyes fired, but it was a clean miss. Unit 01 threw its head back and howled in raw fury. Its fists smashed down shattering Zeruel's skull.

With that the Angel ceased to move, but Unit 01 kept raining down blows, flattening Zeruel's head into a pile of black goo. The EVA then began ripping the Angel apart.

"Shinji calm down!" Misato yelled. It's over! Stop!"

"The pilot's unconscious," Mikoto said in a shaky voice.

Misato turned to him sharply. "What? Is the Dummy Plug…"

"The Dummy Plug is still offline." Mikoto told her.

Misato and the others watched in fear. None of the EVAs had ever behaved this way. It was acting with a will of its own, converting the emotions of its pilot into murderous action.

"I think it's gone berserk." Misato whispered.

As they looked on the EVA began to eat what it had killed.


	37. Status report

Shinji opened his eyes and looked back up at a familiar ceiling.

He was not surprised to be back in the hospital again. There was an IV tube stuck into one of his arms and the rhythmic beeping of a heart monitor. His mind wasn't completely focused and it felt as if he were drifting between waking and sleeping.

"How are you feeling Shinji?" A warm familiar voice spoke.

He turned his head to see Misato standing there by his bedside, smiling at him comfortingly. Both her hands held behind her back.

"I'm fine. Is Rei all right?"

"Is she all that matters to you Shinji?" Misato asked in a kind voice. "The entire world is in danger and all you care about is Rei. Are you really so selfish?"

Her words caught him by surprise. Misato was usually very understanding. "I… I don't think it's selfish to be worried about Rei. I love her."

"She is dead Shinji." Misato said pleasantly. Her smile grew wider and stretched from ear to ear. "I am dead. Your father is dead. We are all dead, because of you. We all died because of you. You were a coward and you let all of us die."

From behind her back Misato drew out a small pistol and placed it to the side of her head.

"And now you are all alone in Hell."

She pulled the trigger and blew her brains out right in front of him.

XXX

"No!" Shinji shouted and sat up in bed.

He looked about wildly. He was in a hospital room with an IV and heart monitor, but there was no sign of Misato.

The door opened and a nurse in a white uniform rushed in. "Are you all right? What happened?"

Shinji stared at her. It took him a moment to realize it had been a dream. His heart was beating like crazy and his hands were shaking. Not knowing what else to do he began to cry.

The confused nurse told him she would get the doctor.

XXX

Commander Fuyutsuki was standing on one of the walkways high above the EVA holding pens.

Unit 00 was covered in scaffolding and work crews who were feverishly working to reattach its right arm and repair the damage to its side. It had been about twelve hours since the end of the battle but no one had gotten any rest. Along with the work being done here a 'cover' was being built where the pyramid had once stood. That was to at least give a pretense that the next Angel wouldn't have a straight run to Terminal Dogma. Fuyutsuki knew it was a pointless effort; a little concrete and steel wouldn't make any difference come the next attack. But it had to be done, for the sake of moral if nothing else. The next attack could come at any time.

Unit 02 had been officially decommissioned. Given the extreme costs to repairing it and its poor performance record the decision had been made to scrap the EVA and use it for parts. Bits of it were already being used to repair Unit 00.

Also beneath him in one of the holding pens was Unit 01. The EVA had taken virtually no damage during the battle. Nevertheless, it had multiple restraints placed over all its appendages. Even with nothing to repair there were workers crawling all over it, both on the outside and the accessible sections inside. Following the battle Unit 01 had been given a shutdown order and it had turned off.

Eventually.

"I have been with this project almost from the beginning major." Fuyutsuki said. "Yet even I don't truly understand what these… weapons are capable of." That was true, though he knew more than he let on.

"Yes sir," Misato replied sounding very tired. She had been going nonstop since the battle. Recovering the pilots and their EVAs had been nerve wracking. Unit 01 had ignored its shutdown order and had even continued with its meal after having its cable ejected and running pout of battery life. When it had finished eating it had _finally_ shut itself down. After witnessing everything it had done Misato couldn't help but feel nervous around it.

"Can you give me a status update on the situation?"

"Yes commander," Misato refocused on her duty. As soon as she was done here she would need about a gallon of coffee. "Pilots Kaworu and Rei suffered no harm beyond mental trauma connected to the damage inflicted on their EVAs, they have already passed medical examination and been released."

"And pilot Shinji?"

"He recently awakened and is being evaluated now. Ritsuko will let us know his condition as soon as she finishes examining him."

The commander nodded. While he was quite eager to find out Shinji's condition that wasn't the priority at the moment. "What about the EVAs?"

"As you know commander Unit 02 is being broken up for parts. Unit 00 should have its right arm reattached and be combat worthy within seventy two hours. If we are attacked before that time we could still use it, though its combat effectiveness would be seriously degraded."

The commander simply nodded and invited her to continue.

"Unit 05 is already on route to us. It should be here in less than three hours. When I called Beijing and told them we had only one operational EVA they actually got off their asses and decided to help us." Misato couldn't keep the smugness from her voice.

"Despite the situation I want to keep to the protocols. Given what happened with Unit 03 I don't want Unit 05 brought to the geofront until it has been tested."

"That will delay things a bit but I certainly can't argue with you. I have already arranged to have Unit 05 delivered to Hinata Base and scheduled preliminary tests. Kaworu has agreed to act as test pilot. I also intend to run some tests using the Dummy Plug with no pilot on board." Next time Misato intended to know for sure whether or not the Dummy Plug could operate an AT Field on its own.

"Carry out whatever tests you feel to be necessary, just be sure that the unit is functional and safe before bringing it here."

"Yes commander."

Though there was no one within earshot Fuyutsuki still looked about and then lowered his voice. "Now what can you tell me about Unit 01?"

Misato fidgeted ever so slightly and cast a nervous glance downwards at the gigantic mecha. "All the monitoring and recording devices inside the entry plug were inactive for a period lasting nineteen minutes and twenty six seconds. The lapse coinciding with the moment Shinji lost consciousness and ending when Unit 01 shutdown. During that time it acted independently of its pilot and defeated and… and then consumed most of the enemy angel."

"Including its S2 engine." Fuyutsuki said quietly.

"That's right commander, not only did it ingest the S2 engine but our preliminary findings are that it has somehow relocated it into its own body. I don't know how, but it appears to have a functioning S2 engine now." Misato licked her lips uneasily. "Given what happened to the NERV base that was experimenting with Unit 04 I can't say I am very happy about it."

"I can understand your concerns Major. As of this moment this information is classified. You are not to file any reports about this matter or even enter it into the data base. You can share what you know with Ritsuko but no one else, is that clear?"

"Yes sir." Misato answered but did not look happy.

"Also, have the research team that was investigating this arrested immediately and put into isolation."

"What?"

"You heard me major. I want it done immediately. I am very serious about keeping this secret."

Before Misato could argue with him Fuyutsuki turned and walked away. Unlike Gendo he had no intention of murdering innocent men just to keep a secret. These men would be kept in calls and not allowed to communicate with others. It was drastic, but if he was going to keep SEELE from finding out the truth it was necessary.


	38. Questions

Shinji was still in a hospital bed.

He'd had a physical examination, had blood drawn, been given X-rays and CT scans. In other words, the same old routine. He'd been told that Rei and Kowaru were both fine. Shinji had really wanted to see Rei, but he'd been told he wouldn't be allowed any visitors. No one explained why, they just reassured him it was a precaution and that he would be released from the hospital soon.

No one would specify how long 'soon' was.

The door to his room opened and a familiar figure in a short skirt and white lab coat stepped inside. "Good morning Shinji, how are you feeling?" Ritsuko asked.

"Just fine," he answered wearily.

"Good, that's good." Ritsuko came over to his bedside. She then took out a syringe.

"What's that?" Shinji asked nervously.

"Just a little something to help you with the pain." Ritsuko said reassuringly.

"But I'm not in pain."

"It's just something to help you relax. No need to be worried." There was a nozzle attached to his IV tube. Ritsuko stuck the needle in and pressed down, emptying the contents into the IV tube. "See? Completely painless."

Despite her smile and cheerful demeanor Shinji felt nervous. There had been a time, before all this started, that he had trusted all the people who worked here and truly believed NERV to be the world's hope for salvation. Since the attacks had begun he'd been lied to and manipulated. He'd seen Rei arrested on his father's whim. He'd seen Asuka sacrificed and then tossed aside. People were used up and forgotten; all for the sake of winning against the Angels. And no one seemed to care so long as they won.

On a certain level Shinji understood that. When losing meant the end of the world you did what you had to. He just wondered if this was really the only way, using people to get what you want. Was this unique to this situation? Or was this how people acted all the time?

"Do we all just use each other?" Shinji mumbled.

"What was that?" Ritsuko asked.

Shinji blinked. He hadn't meant to say that out loud. "Nothing, sorry." He was feeling _very _relaxed all of a sudden, like he was floating on a cloud.

Ritsuko just stood there for a couple more minutes observing him. She was giving the drugs time to enter his system. His eyes were becoming dilated and he appeared to be losing focus. When she was satisfied he was completely under its effect she began.

"Shinji, I need to ask you a few questions, and I need you to answer me as completely as you can. Don't hold anything back. Tell me everything, even if you think it's unimportant. Do you understand?"

He blinked at her. "Okay."

"What happened in the entry plug Shinji?"

"I got scared." He replied in a hollow tone. "I saw how strong the Angel was and I was afraid. I didn't want to die."

"I understand Shinji, it's perfectly normal to have that sort of reaction under such circumstances. You do understand though that you have to fight, don't you?"

"Why?" He asked in that same empty voice. "Why me? Why Rei?"

"I am afraid this is what you were born for. Call it karma or fate or the universe playing a nasty little joke on you. The fact remains you are not allowed to run away."

"It's not fair."

"No, but life rarely is. I will give you something to help you with your fears."

"You're going to drug me?"

"I am going to help you." Ritsuko told him pleasantly. "Now Shinji, please tell me what happened when you attacked the Angel."

Ritsuko saw him blink several times. "I don't remember."

"I know you were unconscious during the event itself, but tell me what you do remember."

He began blinking again. "I… I was angry. All I could think about was saving Rei. I wanted to tear the Angel apart with my bare hands and…"

Shinji hesitated, his eyes blinking in rapid fire.

"Don't fight it Shinji," Ritsuko said gently. "Just tell me the truth."

"Right before I blacked out, I imagined my mother was there with me."

"I see," Ritsuko said neutrally. "What did she say?"

"Nothing, but I could tell she was angry too."

Ritsuko nodded. She had many more questions for him.

XXX

Rei wished she'd been allowed to visit Shinji at the NERV medical facility. She had been assured that Shinji was fine and that they simply needed to conduct a few tests. The answer had not made her happy, but she'd been promised he would be released soon.

Rei was in their apartment packing up Shinji's clothes. She and Shinji-kun were being assigned to quarters inside NERV headquarters. So everyone on staff who had been living in Tokyo-3. After the latest attack it had finally been decided to evacuate the city of its remaining civilian population and move all military and NERV staff to the headquarters.

Rei didn't think they would have much trouble emptying out the city. Most of the civilians had long since left. She estimated that there might still be five percent of the population from a year ago.

As Rei folded Shinji's shirts and put them in a suitcase she hoped the ordinary people would find someplace where they could be safe and enjoy their lives.

Before the end.

XXX

"It's pink." Kaworu said in surprise.

A very tired Misato smothered a yawn before replying. "You can blame NERV Beijing branch for that. Unfortunately, when they received the specs for building their EVA the color was left optional. I know you're not happy, but there's nothing we can do right now. If you want we can maybe paint it later when we have the time. Though I can already hear the accountants scream about wasting funds."

"What are you talking about Misato-san?" Kaworu asked with an amused grin. "I like it. It's really cute."

"Cute?" Misato looked up at the fifty foot EVA. It had arms that went all the way to its knees, three eyes including one in the middle of its forehead, and two horns. It had no mouth. Despite the color its design was a bit disturbing. "Right, it's the cutest giant monster ever."

"Even if it's meant to be a weapon of destruction there's no reason why it can't be a thing of beauty too."

"Kaworu-kun you have very strange tastes."

He chuckled. "You're not the first to think that."

"Well, as long as it actually works and isn't an Angel in disguise I'll be satisfied no matter what color it is. We'll test out the Dummy Plug first and then have you try to pilot it."

"Fine."

He headed into the control center of Hinata Base humming a happy tune. He wondered if Shinji-kun would like his new EVA.

XXX

"Have you ever heard of SEELE?" Ritsuko asked.

"Yes, I've heard rumors about them. They are supposed to be a secret organization that controls NERV and the UN. I asked my father about them once, he said they didn't exist."

The mention of Gendo made her twitch a bit. "Do you believe they exist?"

"No."

"Did Kaji ever mention them to you?"

"No."

"Did he ever mention the Human Instrumentality Project?"

"No," he answered blankly. "What is it?"

She ignored the question. "Did Kaji ever talk to you alone?"

"A few times."

"What did he talk to you about?"

"He would ask me about Misato and tell me a few stories about her."

Ritsuko smiled fondly, that did sound like something Kaji would do. "Do you and Rei share a sexual relationship?"

Shinji blinked a few times before answering. "Yes."

Ritsuko nodded, she'd suspected for awhile now. The answer was just confirmation. "Has Rei ever done or said anything strange?"

"Rei is always strange, but I love that about her."

Ritsuko sighed. The problem with using these drugs while conducting an interrogation was that they robbed the subject of any independent thought. While under their influence he couldn't lie and once they wore off he would have no memory of any of this.

"Does she ever talk about the Angels?"

"Yes."

"What does she say about them?"

"That she will protect me from them and that we will beat them."

That was not exactly what Ritsuko was looking for. "Has Rei ever demonstrated strange abilities?"

"When we have sex there's this thing she does with her tongue sometimes."

She shook her head in frustration. Unfortunately in this situation it was on her to ask the right questions. "Has Rei ever done anything a human wouldn't be able to?"

"No."

"Have you ever suspected she is not human?"

"No."

"Did she ever tell you what really happened to your father?"

"She said he released her from her cell without an explanation."

"That's it?" Ritsuko said incredulously.

"Yes, it sounded like something he would do."

Ritsuko knew how true that was. "Has your father contacted you since he left?"

"No."

"Has he contacted Rei?"

"No."

"Does Rei ever bring him up or wonder about him?"

"No."

"Don't you find it strange that your father has been gone for months and hasn't contacted you even once?"

"No, my father never wanted to talk to me while he was here. I thought him ignoring me was normal. I am just glad he is gone."

"Do you hate him?"

"Yes."

"Do you wish he was dead?"

"No, I just want him to leave us alone."

"What do you think of what Asuka said to you?"

"It makes me very sad to know she is insane now."

Ritsuko frowned. She'd hoped to uncover Rei's secrets but found nothing. Was that because Shinji didn't know? Or because there was nothing there to find?

"We're done now Shinji, you can get some sleep now."

Nodding, he laid his head down on the pillow and was immediately asleep.

Ritsuko quietly left to report her findings.


End file.
